tihmxy  of  t:he  theological  ^eminarjp 

PRINCETON  .  NEW  JERSEY 

FROM  THE  LIBRARY  OF 
ROBERT  ELLIOTT  SPEER 


BSZ4S4 
.HIT 


THE  VIRGIN  MOTHER 


THE  VIRGIN  MOTHER 


RETREAT  ADDRESSES 

ON 

THE  LIFE  OF  THE  BLESSED  VIRGIN  MARY 


AS    TOLD    IN    THE    GOSPELS 


IVith  an  appended  Essay  on  the  Virgin  Birth 
of  our  Lord  Jesus  Christ 


BY  THB      \/ 

RT.  REV.  A.  C.  A.  HALL,  D.D. 

Bishop  of  Vermotit 


NEW  YORK 
LONGMANS,  GREEN,  &  CO. 

LONDON  AND  BOMBAY 
1904 


COPVRIGHT,  1894,  BY 

LONGMANS.  GREEN,  AND  CO. 


First  Edition,  October,  1894. 

Reprinted  November,  1894,  January,  1895, 

February,  1896,  and  January,  1899. 

January,  igoz,    January,  1904 


PREFACE. 


I  HAVE  been  repeatedly  urged  to  publish 
these  Meditations,  which  in  substance  have 
been  several  times  given  in  Retreats  for 
Women  on  both  sides  of  the  Atlantic.  I 
had  thought  to  write  out  the  Addresses 
afresh  from  notes  taken  on  different  oc- 
casions, but  this  has  proved  impossible.  The 
notes  which  were  taken  with  considerable 
fulness,  but  by  no  means  verbatim^  at  a 
Retreat  for  the  Guild  of  the  Epiphany  (a 
society  of  Churchwomen  engaged  in  educa- 
tional work),  in  the  Chapel  of  the  Sisters  of 
Bethany,  London,  in  January,  1892,  are  here 
printed,   after  careful  revision    as    regards 


VI  PREFACE. 

their  matter,  but  with  manifold  imperfection 
of  literary  form. 

However,  the  Addresses  are  intended 
now,  as  when  delivered,  to  serve  as  sugges- 
tions for  meditation  and  prayer,  rather  than 
as  finished  discourses.  In  this  way  I  trust 
they  may  prove  helpful. 

The  Essay  on  the  Virgin  birth  of  our 
Lord  Jesus  Christ,  which  is  printed  as  an 
appendix,  was  written  for  a  clerical  society 
in  the  spring  of  1891,  and  was  published 
at  that  time  in  The  Church  Eclectic,  It 
gives  the  grounds  for  accepting  the  literal 
statement  of  the  Creed  which  is  taken  for 
granted  in  the  Meditations. 

A.  C.  A.  H. 

Burlington,  Vermont, 
August^  i8g4. 


CONTENTS 


ON  THE  LIFE  OF   THE  BLESSED  VIRGIN  MARY 

PAGE 

I.  The  Predestination  of  the  Virgin 

Mother i 

II.  Her  Training  for  Her  Vocation    .     20 

HI.  The  Annunciation        39 

IV.  The  Visitation 58 

V.  The    Birth    of    Our    Lord   Jesus 

Christ        'jd 

VI.  The  Purification loi 

VII.  The  Flight  into  Egypt     .     .     .     .120 
VIII.  The   Losing   and    Finding   of  the 

Holy  Child 141 

IX.  The  Marriage  Feast  at  Cana    .     .162 
X.  The  Virgin  Mother  at  the  Cross  .   186 
XL  The  Virgin    Mother  Waiting   for 

the  Gift  of  the  Holy  Ghost     .   205 


INTRODUCTORY  MEDITATION. 

THE    PREDESTINATION  OF    THE    VIRGIN    MOTHER. 

We  will  take  for  the  general  subject  of 
our  Retreat,  as  the  starting-point  of  our 
Meditations,  the  life  of  the  Blessed  Virgin 
Mother^  as  presented  to  us  in  the  pages  of 
the  Gospels. 

So  we  will  think  in  our  several  medita- 
tions of  different  scenes  and  mysteries  in 
her  life,  as  recorded  in  the  Gospels;  of  her 
Predestination;  her  Training  for  the  mani- 
festation of  God's  high  purpose;  of  the 
Annunciation  by  the  Angel;  of  her  Visita- 
tion; of  the  Birth  of  the  Holy  Child  and  the 
accomplishment  of  the  Mystery  of  the  Incar- 
nation; of  her  Purification  and  the  Presenta- 
tion of  her  Child  in  the  Temple;  of  the 
Flight  into  Egypt,  and  the  return  to  Naza- 
reth; of  the  scene  in  the  Temple  when  her 
Child  was  twelve  years  old.     Then  we  will 


THE  VIRGIN  MOTHER. 


think  of  her  at  the  beginning  of  His  Minis- 
try, at  the  Marriage  Feast  at  Cana  of  Galilee ; 
of  her  standing  at  the  foot  of  the  Cross;  of 
the  absence  of  her  name  from  those  to  whom 
the  Lord  showed  Himself  after  His  Resur- 
rection; and,  lastly,  we  will  take  leave  of 
her  in  the  Upper  Chamber,  waiting  on  her 
knees  in  prayer  for  the  gift  of  the  Holy 
Ghost. 

And  in  thus  directing  our  thoughts  to  her, 
it  will  not  be  so  much  with  the  view  of  con- 
sidering her  unique  and  personal  honour, 
but,  rather,  of  regarding  her  as  the  type  and 
pattern  of  the  Church  collectively  and  of 
every  individual  soul  in  whom  Christ  is  to  be 
born  by  the  Spirit's  power. 

So  does  our  blessed  Lord  place  her  before 
us.  You  will  remember  how  it  is  told  us  by 
St.  Luke*  that,  when  He  was  preaching  to 
the  multitude,  a  woman,  struck  by  the 
power  and  beauty  of  His  teaching,  ex- 
claimed with  enthusiasm:  **  Blessed  is  the 
womb  that  bare  Thee,  and  the  paps  which 
Thou    hast   sucked ! " — and    how   our    Lord 

*  St.  Luke  xi.  27,  28. 


HER  PREDESTINATION. 


turned  the  encomium  pronounced  on  His 
Mother: — *'Yea,  rather,"  He  says,  "blessed 
are  they  that  hear  the  Word  of  God 
and  keep  it."  He  is  not  denying  His 
Mother's  honour,  but  only  referring  that 
honour  and  praise  to  its  truest,  deepest 
causG. 

Thus  St.  Augustine  says,  "She  is  more 
blessed  in  that  she  bore  Christ  in  her  heart 
by  faith,  than  in  that  she  conceived  Him  in 
her  womb  according  to  the  flesh."  And 
St.  Ambrose,  "According  to  the  flesh,  the 
Mother  of  Christ  is  but  one;  according  to 
the  Spirit,  the  fruit  which  all  bear  is  Christ." 
And  so  you  will  remember  on  another  occa- 
sion, where  our  Lord  is  told  that  His  Mother 
and  His  brethren  are  standing  without,  de- 
siring to  speak  with  Him,  He  asks,  "Who  is 
My  mother,  and  who  are  My  brethren  ? " 
And,  then  lifting  up  His  hands  over  His  dis- 
ciples. He  says:  "Whosoever  shall  do  the 
will  of  My  Father  which  is  in  Heaven,  the 
same  is  My  brother  and  sister  and 
mother  ;  "  *  at  once  repudiating  any  merely 
*  St.  Matt.  xii.  46-50. 


THE  VIRGIN  MOTHER. 


natural  relationship  that  would  interfere  with 
His  Heavenly  Father's  work,  and  at  the 
same  time  declaring  that  all  may  have  a 
share  in  Mary's  highest  prerogative. 

Joy  to  be  the  Mother  of  the  Lord, 

And  thine  the   truer  bliss, 
In  every  thought,  and  deed,   and   word, 

To  be  forever  His. 


Ave  Maria  !  thou  whose  name 
All  but  adoring  love  may  claim, 

Yet  may  we  reach  thy  shrine; 
For  He,  thy  Son  and  Saviour,  vows 
To  crown   all   lowly,   lofty  brows 

With  love  and  joy  like  thine. 

Bless'd  is  the  womb  that  bare  Him — bless'd 
The  bosom  where  His  lips  were  press'd, 

But  rather  bless'd  are  they 
Who  hear  His  word  and  keep  it  well. 
The  living  homes  where  Christ  shall  dwell 

And  never  pass  away.  * 

I.    It     is     in     this     light     that     we     are 
going    to    think    of    the    Blessed    Virgin — 
as  the  pattern  and  figure   of   all  the    faith- 
ful;   for    consider   (and   we   will    take    this 
*  Christian  Year,     Poem  for  the  Annunciation. 


HER  PREDESTINATION. 


as  the  first  point  in  our  meditation)  how 
all  the  mysteries  of  Our  Lord's  Incar- 
nate Life  are  intended  to  have  their  counter- 
part in  the  spiritual  experience  of  the  faith- 
ful. Remember  how  constantly  this  thought 
is  brought  before  us  in  the  Collects  of  the 
Prayer  Book,  e.  g,  in  those  for  the  Annun- 
ciation, Christmas,  Easter  Eve,  and  the 
Ascension.  For  us  He  was  bom,  that  we 
might  be  re-bom  in  Him;  for  us  He  died, 
that  we  might  die  with  Him  to  sin  and  the 
world  and  self;  for  us  He  rose,  that  in  Him 
we  might  rise  to  newness  of  life ;  for  us  He 
ascended,  that  with  Him  we  might  also 
in  heart  and  mind  thither  ascend,  and  with 
Him  continually  dwell.  So,  pre-eminently, 
in  the  mystery  of  the  Incarnation,  Mary's 
name  stands  in  the  Creed,  not  merely  as  one 
honoured  above  all  women,  but  as  the  pattern 
of  all  in  her  humility,  purity  and  obedience, 
which  made  her  meet  to  conceive  Christ  by 
the  Spirit's  power,  to  become  the  Mother  of 
the  Lord. 

And  this  very  mystery  of  the  Incarnation 
is  to  be  re-enacted  in  our  own  experience. 


THE  VIRGIN  MOTHER. 


How  is  that?  The  Son  of  God,  One  with 
the  Father,  becoming  Man,  one  of  us,  of 
Mary's  substance,  by  the  Spirit's  power,  is 
to  be  bom  in  us  !  What  is  our  Christian  life 
for — what  are  all  the  Sacraments  for,  but  for 
this,  that  the  Glorified  Incarnate  Son  may 
take  of  our  substance,  our  nature,  our  tal- 
ents, and  may  be  bom  in  us  by  grace,  that 
we  may  have  His  Life  reproduced  in  us? 
Nothing  short  of  the  Life  of  the  Eternal  Son 
of  God — the  Holiness,  the  Purity  of  God,  is 
the  standard  at  which  we  are  to  aim ;  that  is 
to  be  reproduced  in  our  circumstances:  the 
Divine  Perfections  are  to  be  translated,  re- 
produced in  our  life,  our  home,  our  trials, 
our  difficulties,  our  age  of  the  world;  He  is 
to  be  really  and  truly  Incarnate  of  our  sub- 
stance !  Ah !  see  how  the  Incarnation  really 
gives  to  us  the  standard  of  Christian  life. 

And  this  is  to  be  true  of  every  individual 
experience;  not  only  of  the  Church,  but  of 
each  one  of  us.  Let  us  ask  ourselves,  What 
is  the  special  likeness  of  Christ  that  He 
would  reproduce  in  me  ?  What  are  the  fea- 
tures of  His  Life  that  He  calls  me  to  imi- 


HER  PREDESTINATION. 


tate  ?  What  pattern  would  He  set  before 
me  in  my  work,  my  circumstances,  my 
difficulties  ?  What  are  the  inspirations  of 
grace  that  He  would  urge  me  to  cultivate 
and  cherish?  Ah!  I  come  into  Retreati 
to  see  how  this  is  to  be  carried  out,  how  His 
Life  is  to  be  re-enacted  more  truly  than  ever 
in  my  experience — how  He  is  to  be  born  in 
me  by  the  Spirit's  power. 

So  we  are  to  think  how  the  Mysteries  of 
Our  Lord's  Incarnate  Life  are  to  have  their 
counterpart  in  our  own  spiritual  experience. 

IL  Consider,  secondly,  Marfs  predestina^ 
Hon  and  ours, 

**  Known  unto  God  are  all  His  works  from 
the  beginning  of  the  world."*  It  was  prob- 
ably God's  original,  eternal  purpose  that 
His  Son  should  become  Incarnate  and 
assume  our  human  nature,  quite  apart  from 
the  after  necessity  of  restoring  that  nature, 
of  the  beating  down  of  man's  foes,  and  of 
making  reparation  for  the  offence  against 
the  Divine  Majesty.  We  may  believe  that 
*  Acts  XV.  1 8. 


8  THE  VIRGIN  MOTHER. 

it  had  ever  been  the  will  of  the  Eternal 
Word  to  become  man,  to  unite  the  creature 
with  the  Creator,  to  manifest  Himself  in  the 
flesh.  He  had  manifested  Himself  in  nature 
already;  He  willed  a  further  manifestation 
of  Himself  in  man,  whom  He  had  made  **in 
His  image  and  likeness;"*  in  "the  fulness 
of  time"  He  meant  to  be  born  in  man's 
nature,  and  in  it  to  accomplish  the  Divine 
purpose  in  its  fulness,  to  act  out  the  Divine 
Perfections  in  human  circumstances. 

And  then  sin  came  in  and  modified  that 
original  plan  of  Almighty  God.  It  still  held 
on,  but  oh,  what  a  change  was  rendered  nec- 
essary in  the  accomplishment  of  God's  Pur- 
pose !  Think  what  it  would  have  been,  had 
there  been  no  sin  to  meet,  to  make  repara- 
tion for.  Think  how  the  whole  Life  of  the 
Incarnate  Son  would  have  been  one  unbroken 
joy;  using  all  His  faculties  in  carrying  out 
the  Father's  will;  ruling  all  the  world 
according  to  the  Father's  pleasure !  But  sin 
came  in ;  and  it  must  be  conquered,  at  what- 
ever cost;  the  ruined  nature  must  be  re- 
*  Gen.  i.  26. 


HER  PREDESTINATION. 


paired,  Satan's  chains  wrenched  apart;  the 
Seed  of  the  woman  must  crush  the  serpent's 
head,  at  the  expense  of  His  own  heel 
being  bruised  in  the  encounter;  He  must 
do  battle  with  our  spiritual  foes  and  set  us 
free. 

But  God's  purpose  lasts  on;  the  same  re- 
sult is  attained  in  the  end,  though  by  a  dif- 
ferent route.  Instead  of  being  a  Man  of  Joy 
from  the  Cradle  to  the  Ascension,  He  became 
**a  Man  of  Sorrows  and  acquainted  with 
grief,"  *  until  the  battle  had  been  fought  out 
and  redemption  won,  and  He  **  was  crowned 
with  glory  and  honour."  f 

Ah!  and  just  so  must  it  be  in  our  own 
experience.  God  had  a  purpose  for  each  one 
of  us,  a  work  for  each  one  to  do,  a  place  for 
each  one  to  fill,  an  influence  for  each  one  to 
exert,  a  likeness  to  His  dear  Son  for  each 
'one  to  manifest,  and,  then,  a  place  for  each 
one  to  fill  in  His  holy  Temple.  And  His 
purpose  for  us  was  clear  from  all  eternity; 
He  saw  it  at  the  Font  of  regeneration,  when 
He  started  us  on  our  course;   and  then, — 

*  Isaiah  liii.  3.         f  Ps.  viii.  5  j  Heb.  ii.  8-10. 


THE  VIRGIN  MOTHER. 


alas !  alas !  how  have  we  to  lament  the  loss 
and  the  misuse  of  those  gifts  of  nature  and 
of  grace!  How  have  we  thwarted  God's 
purpose,  come  short  of  His  expectation ! 

Yet  He  has  not  cast  us  off  with  our  sin; 
**  He  has  devised  means  that  His  banished 
be  not  expelled  from  Him."*  And,  as  He 
devises  means  whereby  the  fallen  race  may- 
be brought  back  to  Him  through  the  Passion 
of  His  Incarnate  Son ;  so,  in  individual  lives, 
the  path  of  penitence  is  necessary;  we  have 
to  struggle  on,  in  our  individual  experience, 
as  did  once  our  great  Representative.  We 
have  to  come  back;  God  will  accomplish  His 
original  purpose,  though  He  will  modify 
and  adapt  His  plan.  His  purpose  lasts  on ; 
we  must  rise  to  that  in  the  end,  or  who  can 
say  that  He  will  not  cast  us  away  ?  We  may 
not  say,  ' '  God's  purpose  is  too  high  for  me ; 
I  cannot  rise  to  it;  I  will  take  something 
else !  That  which  I  might  have  risen  to  so 
easily,  had  I  been  faithful  to  His  inspira- 
tions, docile  to  the  indications  of  His  will, 
within   and  without,    is  too    great    for  me 

-*2  Sam.  xiv.  14. 


HER  PREDESTINATION: 


now !  "  Alas !  we  have  to  climb  a  rough 
path  now,  to  travel  by  a  more  circuitous 
road;  but  it  will  lead  to  the  same  goal  at 
last.  Praise  to  His  Name !  He  did  not  cast 
us  ofiE — 

When  all  was  sin  and  shame 
A  second  Adam  to  the  fight 
And  to  the  rescue  came !  * 

It  is  just  the  same  with  our  own  individual 
lives.  Penitence^  then,  and  Hope,  we  may- 
take  as  the  primary  lesson  of  our  Retreat. 
In  our  self-examination  let  us  see  how  far, 
how  sadly  far,  we  have  failed  to  correspond 
with  what  we  knew  to  be  His  will  for  us. 
Well  might  we  become  discouraged  and 
reckless  as  we  look  back.  But  no!  Hope 
comes  in  to  save  us  from  the  snare.  As  a 
means  of  reconciliation  the  Passion  of  the 
Incarnate  Son  came  in  to  accomplish  God's 
purpose  and  original  plan  for  man.  Even 
so  His  purpose  for  me  lasts  on  and  shall  be 
accomplished;  through  penitence  and  strug- 
gle the  likeness  of  the  Eternal  Son  shall  be 
fashioned  in  me. 

*  "  Dream  of  GerontiusP    By  J.  H.  Newman. 


THE  VIRGIN  MOTHER. 


III.  Once  more.  Think  of  God's  purpose 
standing  sure  and  being  accomplished,  in 
spite  of  long  delay  and  many  apparent  dis- 
appointments and  reverses.  The  promise  of 
the  Redeemer,  "the  Seed  of  the  woman,"* 
Who  should  reverse  the  defeat  which  our  first 
parents  had  sustained  at  the  hands  of  the 
enemy,  given  along  with  the  sentence  pro- 
nounced on  man's  disobedience  and  sin,  is 
clung  to  by  Eve;  when  Cain  was  born,  she 
thought,  "I  have  gotten  The  Man  from  the 
Lord "  t  — that  seed  to  which  He  pointed. 
Ah  !  what  disappointment !  In  Cain  she  sees 
but  the  aggravation  of  her  own  sin;  the 
parents  had  broken  away  from  love  to  God, 
their  child  from  love  to  his  brother.  So  sin 
spreads. 

So  think,  as  sin  becomes  worse  and  worse, 
how  the  promise  seems  further  and  further 
off.  Yet  by  the  Prophets  it  is  made  more 
and  more  clear  as  time  goes  on.  Though 
so  long  delayed,  in  the  end  the  promise  of 
God  is  found  to  have  stood  firm,  the  **Seed 
of  the  woman,"  the  Virgin-born  appears; 
*Gen.  iii.  15.  fGen.  iv.  i. 


HER  PREDESTINATION. 


God  has  been  true  to  His  word.  Man  needs 
to  have  patience,  to  be  subjected  to  long  dis- 
cipline ;  but  God  never  takes  back  His  word. 
Remember  that  text  at  the  beginning  of  St. 
John's  Gospel,  commonly  misunderstood  as  it 
stands  in  our  ordinary  version :  * '  The  light 
shineth  in  darkness,  and  the  darkness  com- 
prehended it  not."  *  We  ordinarily  under- 
stand it  of  the  darkness  not  taking  i?t  the  light 
— not  comprehending  it — not  assimilating  it. 
Of  course  darkness  cannot  assimilate  light, 
or  it  would  cease  to  be  darkness.  The  right 
meaning  is,  * '  the  light  shineth  in  the  dark- 
ness, and  the  darkness  overcame  it  not " — as 
we  read  in  the  margin  of  the  Revised  Ver- 
sion, ^^  did  not  overtake  it.'*  The  idea  is  of 
a  little  flame  shining  in  the  darkness,  and 
the  gloom  around  seeming  now  and  again  to 
threaten  to  extinguish  it.  But  it  is  not  over- 
whelmed, it  shines  on;  and  at  last  the  light 
blazes  forth  and  illuminates  the  world.  Yes ; 
the  Word  of  God  is  "the  light  which  lighteth 
every  man  that  cometh  into  the  world."  f 
He  shines,   however  dimly,    in  every  man's 

*St.  Johni.  5.  t  St.  John  i.  9. 


14  THE  VIRGIN  MOTHER. 

reason  and  conscience,  amid  all  their  dark- 
ness, prejudice,  disobedience  and  sin,  while 
it  seems  continually  as  if  the  darkness  were 
about  to  extinguish  that  little  flickering 
spark  of  light.  So  was  it  with  God's  prom- 
ise. At  the  time  of  the  Flood  all  flesh  had 
**  corrupted  his  way  upon  the  earth,"*  and 
yet  God's  word  holds  on;  the  light  revives. 
Israel  goes  into  Egypt;  and  it  seems  as  if 
the  promise  given  to  Abraham  is  to  be  over- 
whelmed in  Egyptian  darkness  and  sin.  But 
no ;  it  lasts  on ;  the  light  appears  to  die  out, 
but  it  is  seen  again.  Again  in  the  Babylon- 
ish Captivity  all  seems  to  be  swallowed  up ; 
but  no,  it  lasts  on,  it  is  not  overwhelmed; 
when  the  world  was  at  its  darkest  and  drear- 
iest, things  right  themselves;  and  then,  at 
last,  the  light  blazes  forth  to  disperse  the 
darkness,  though  Israel  is  given  up  to  the 
hope  of  an  earthly  Messiah,  and  only  just  a 
few,  like  Simeon  and  Anna,  Mary  and 
Joseph,  and  the  disciples  of  the  Baptist,  are 
waiting  for  redemption  in  Israel,  the  promise 
is  fulfilled,  the  Seed  of  the  woman  comes  at 
*  Gen.  vi.  12. 


HER  PREDESTINATION. 


the  expense  of  His  toil  and  Passion  to  work 
out  man's  redemption. 

And  so  is  it  in  our  individual  experience. 
That  illuminating  light  of  conscience,  quick- 
ened by  regenerating  grace,  seems  in  some 
of  us,  at  times,  to  be  all  but  blotted  out.  But 
no ;  that  inspiration  which  pursued  us  so  lov- 
ingly, in  spite  of  all  our  disregard  of  its 
warnings,  shining  out  now  and  again,  through 
the  sins  of  our  life,  is  not  extinguished ;  it  is 
still  there,  it  would  not  let  us  have  peace ;  it 
is  capable  of  being  fanned  into  a  burning 
flame  which  will  disperse  all  the  darkness 
around.  Think,  then,  as  you  prepare  for  a 
review  of  past  experiences,  of  this  wonderful, 
long-suffering  patience  of  God,  bearing  with 
us  individually,  as  with  the  human  race 
collectively;  learn  from  it  patience  in  deal- 
ing with  others,  hopefulness  with  regard  to 
those  who  are  committed  to  your  charge; 
and  when  all  seems  to  be  going  wrong, 
when  all  seems  to  be  dead,  hold  on  to  them 
still,  as  God  has  held  on  to  you.  The  little 
spark — O  cherish  it ;  there  is  something  good 
in  that  child;  hold  on  to  it;  that  spark  is  not 


l6  THE  VIRGIN  MOTHER. 

overwhelmed  yet;  nay,  with  careful  cherish- 
ing it  shall  yet  burst  out  into  a  flame,  and, 
in  God's  good  time,  disperse  the  surround- 
ing gloom. 

Learn,  then,  the  lesson  of  patience  and 
hopefulness,  from  Mary's  predestination  and 
ours,  from  God's  purpose,  and,  in  the  end, 
its  sure  accomplishment.  **Wait  for  the 
vision;"  and  ** though  it  tarry,"  still,  '*wait 
for  it;"  for,  in  the  end,  **it  will  surely 
come."* 

One  more  lesson  in  connection  with,  and 
in  illustration  of,  the  same  truth.  Have 
you  ever  noticed  in  this  light  the  genealogy 
at  the  very  beginning  of  St.  Matthew's  Gos- 
pel ?  Sometimes  one  has  wondered  at  the 
long  list  of  names,  dry  and  uninteresting, 
standing  at  the  forefront  of  the  New  Testa- 
ment— what  business  has  it  there  ?  Ah ! 
just  look.  It  does,  indeed,  stand  in  the  fore- 
front of  the  Gospel,  full  of  **  good  news"  for 
those  who  have  eyes  to  see!  Run  through 
these  names;  choose  out  the  female  names; 
there  are  four  before  you  come  to  the  name 

*  Habak.  ii.  3. 


HER  PREDESTINATION. 


of  Blessed  Mary,  and  each  one  has  a  horrid 
blot.  There  is  the  name  of  incestuous 
Tamar;  of  Rahab,  the  harlot;  of  Ruth,  one 
of  an  accursed  nation;  and  of  Bathsheba, 
the  adulteress,  who  had  been  the  wife  of 
Uriah.  Through  that  stained  genealogy, 
the  Holy  Seed  comes!  God  shows  us  that 
He  can  bring  out  of  a  stained  line  a  perfect 
work;  that  He  can  ** bring  a  clean  thing  out 
of  an  unclean ;  "*  the  light  is  not  swallowed 
up  in  darkness;  the  promised  Seed  of  the 
Woman  has  come — the  Incarnate  Word  of 
God. 

We  look  back  upon  our  past  life,  like  that 
stained  record,  that  blotted  genealogy,  on 
sins  of  one  kind  and  another — of  wasted  op- 
portunities, of  carelessness  and  of  indiffer- 
ence, and  we  are  tempted  to  despair;  we 
think,  *  *  What  is  the  use  of  my  trying,  of 
my  cherishing  a  high  standard  ?  I  had  bet- 
ter give  up ! "  No ;  at  the  end  of  that 
stained  record,  that  blotted  genealogy, 
stands  the  name  of  the  Virgin  Mother  of 
the  Incarnate  Son,  of  Him  who  came  to 
*  Job  xiv.  4. 


i8  THE  VIRGIN  MOTHER. 

save  His  people  from  our  sins,  to  change  the 
course  of  our  life,  to  purge  away  our  earthly- 
stain,  to  make  us  pure  instead  of  earthly, 
disciplined  instead  of  self-indulgent,  gentle 
and  meek  instead  of  wilful  and  wayward. 
Think  of  the  promise  of  God  standing  sure ; 
think  of  the  perfect  holiness,  at  last  re- 
vealed, the  work  of  the  Spirit  to  sanctify 
all  our  sin-stained  descent — a  gift  that 
has  washed  away  that  which  soiled  our 
life. 

Yes;  there  are  sure  mercies  awaiting  us, 
if  only  we  will  return.  Think  of  the  words 
of  the  Prophet  Jeremiah:  **Thus  saith  the 
Lord  ....  Ye  shall  seek  Me  and  find 
Me,  when  ye  shall  search  for  Me  with  all 
your  heart."* 

Let  me  give  the  Scripture  references  for 
the  passages  I  have  quoted : 

i.  Our  Lord's  words  concerning  His  Blessed  Mother,  as 
the  type  and  pattern  of  the  faithful. — St  Matt.  xii.  49,  50 ; 
St.  Luke  xi.  27,  28. 

ii.  And  in  connection  with  those  words  of  Our  Lord,  the 
words  of  St.  Paul  about  the  reproduction  of  the  Birth  of 
Christ  in  our  own  experience. — Gal.  iv.  9;  Ephes.  iii.  17. 

*  Jer.  xxix.  10-14. 


HER  PREDESTINATION. 


19 


iii.  The  verse  about  the  Light  shining  in  darkness,  and 
the  darkness  overwhelming  it  not. — Si.  John  \.  5. 

iv.  The  stained  genealogy. — St.  Matt.  i. 

V.  God's  promise  of  His  sure  mercies  to  those  who  desire 
to  seek  and  to  return,  and  to  those  who  seek  Him  with  all 
their  heart. — Jer.  xxix.  10-14. 

And  now,  with  the  thought  of  God's  pur- 
pose concerning  Blessed  Mary,  and  of  His 
purpose  for  ourselves ;  of  His  purpose  known 
to  Him  from  the  beginning;  of  His  knowl- 
edge of  us,  both  in  His  predestinating  love, 
as  He  would  make  us,  and  as  we  really  are, 
let  us  kneel  and  repeat  Psalm  cxxxix. 


SECOND   MEDITATION. 

THE    TRAINING    OF    BLESSED    MARY    FOR    HER 
VOCATION. 

Let  us  meditate  upon  the  training  of 
Blessed  Mary.  Contemplate  her  as  a  child, 
studying  the  Old  Testament  Scriptures. 

Almighty  God,  Who  hast  a  work  for  each 
of  us  to  dOj  a  place  for  each  of  us  to  fill; 
have  mercy  upon  us,  we  beseech  Thee,  as  we 
draw  near  to  Thee,  lamenting  all  our  unfaith- 
fulness and  our  want  of  correspondence  with 
Thy  holy  will.  Help  us  to  yield  ourselves 
in  loving  trustfulness  to  Thy  holy  leading; 
grant  us  to  know  what  Thou  wouldst  have 
us  do;  and  give  us  grace  and  power  faith- 
fully to  fulfil  the  same,  that  so  we  may 
grow  in  Thy  knowledge  and  love;  through 
Jesus  Christ  our  Lord.     Amen. 

Our  Father. 

We  take  for  our  leading  thought  through- 


I 


TRAINING  FOR  HER  VOCATION.  21 

out  our  meditations  the  example  of  Blessed 
Mary  as  the  type  and  pattern  of  all  the  faith- 
ful in  whom  Christ  is  to  be  formed  by  the 
Spirit's  power. 

In  our  Introductory  Meditation  we  thought 
of  Blessed  Mary's  predestination,  and  of 
ours;  of  God's  eternal  purpose,  and  how  it 
was  accomplished;  and  of  His  will  for  the 
manifestation  of  His  Son  in  us.  Now  we 
will  go  on  to  consider  her  training  for  her 
vocation,  and  ours. 

In  thinking  of  her  childhood  and  early 
years,  there  is  room,  of  course,  for  a  wide 
range  of  imagination ;  legend  has  been  busy 
concerning  her  youth.  We  will  leave  all 
that  on  one  side.  All  through  the  Retreat 
we  will  try  and  keep  close  to  the  Gospel 
record.  Three  points,  however,  are  dis- 
tinctly suggested  by  the  thoughtful  con- 
sideration of  St.  Luke's  narrative  of  the 
Annunciation  and  Visitation — three  points 
which  throw  light  on  Mary's  previous  history : 

I  St.  Her  preparation.  **  The  Lord  is 
with  thee."* 

*  St  Luke  i.  28. 


THE  VIRGIN  MOTHER. 


2d.  Her  previous  dedication  of  herself 
to  God's  undivided  service,  implied  in  her 
response  to  the  Angelic  Salutation. 

3d.  Her  knowledge  of  God's  Word,  shown 
in  the  Magnificat, 

I.  First,  we  will  consider  Marfs  uncon- 
scious preparation  for  her  vocation,  which  yet 
God  knew  all  along. 

From  the  first  He  had  had  His  purpose; 
**the  seed  of  the  woman  should  bruise  the 
serpent's  head."  * 

He  foresaw  her,  He  foreordained  her.  He 
was  watching  over  her.  He  was  preparing 
her;  but,  all  the  while,  she  grew  up  in  per- 
fect unconsciousness  of  the  great  vocation 
which  was  in  store  for  her.  If  it  could  be 
said  of  St.  Paul  that  he  was  ' '  a  chosen  ves- 
sel;"! of  Jeremiah,  "Before  I  formed  thee 
in  the  belly  I  knew  thee;  and  before  thou 
camest  forth  out  of  the  womb  I  sanctified 
thee,  and  I  ordained  thee  a  prophet  unto  the 
nations;  "J  and  of  John  the  Baptist,  that  he 
was  sanctified  from  his  mother's  womb ;  |  so 
*  Gen.  iii.  15.  f  Acts  ix.  15. 

tJer.i.  5.  ^  St.  Luke  i.  15. 


TRAINING  FOR  HER  VOCATION.  23 

surely  we  may  apply  to  Blessed  Mary  those 
words,  **from  the  bowels  of  my  mother  hath 
He  made  mention  of  my  name."*  Accord- 
ingly, not  only  her  Nativity,  but  her  Concep- 
tion also  is  commemorated  by  the  Church, 
although  the  manner  of  her  sanctification  is 
not  defined.  God  did  not  choose  her  be- 
cause she  was  naturally  fitted,  but  He  fitted 
her  because  He  chose  her.  He  always  fits 
and  prepares  those  whom  He  chooses,  if  only 
they  will  be  true  and  faithful  to  His  purpose 
as  He  makes  His  will  known  to  them,  step 
by  step.  Deiis  coronat  dona  sua  in  nobis. 
It  is  God's  own  gift  that  He  crowns  in  us, 
not  only  in  heaven,  but  on  earth,  as  each 
grace  is  given  in  reward  for  some  previous 
grace  corresponded  with ;  and  that  previous 
grace  is  the  gift  of  God.  So  Mary  was 
* '  filled  with  grace  ;  "  not  ' '  full  of  grace  "  as 
a  source,  but  filled  with  grace,  as  a  choice 
receptacle,  God  Himself  had  been  prepar- 
ing her;  she  herself,  all  the  while,  perfectly 
unconscious;  growing  up  in  Nazareth,  living 
her  simple  child's    life    *'as  a  lily  among 

*Is.  xlix.  I. 


24  THE  VIRGIN  MOTHER. 

thorns,"*  growing  up  sweet  and  beautiful  in 
that  rough  place  of  evil  repute,  concerning 
which  it  was  said,  "Can  any  good  thing 
come  out  of  Nazareth  ? "  f — that  little  pro- 
vincial town,  notorious  for  the  lawlessness 
and  depravity  of  its  inhabitants;  ** un- 
known" to  earth,  *'yet  well  known"  to 
heaven;  God  watching  over  her,  preparing 
her;  and  Mary  all  the  while  unconscious. 

So  is  it  with  each  one  of  us.  God  has 
His  purpose  for  each  one.  We  do  not  come 
into  the  world  at  haphazard  to  find  some 
place  to  fill,  some  work  to  do;  God  has  His 
plan  for  each  one;  ''known  unto  God  are 
all  His  works  from  the  beginning."!  He 
has  arranged  our  circumstances,  our  environ- 
ment, our  inheritance,  our  combination  of 
talents,  the  presence  of  this  gift,  or  the 
absence  of  that — all  have  been  taken  into 
account  by  God,  ordered  and  overruled  by 
that  Wisdom  which  ' '  reacheth  from  one 
end  to  another,  mightily  and  sweetly  order- 
ing all  things."  § 

*  Cant.  ii.  2.  f  St.  John  i.  46. 

J  Acts  XV.  18.  g  Wisdom  viii.  I. 


TRAINING  FOR  HER  VOCATION.  25 

Going  back  to  our  earliest  years,  think 
when  we  were  Baptized,  incorporated  into 
the  Body  of  Christ,  how  He  gave  us  our 
name  and  place  in  His  regenerate  family. 
Our  Baptismal  name  is  sacramental;  not 
only  because  it  tells  of  our  regenerate  posi- 
tion, but  it  is  itself  a  sort  of  sacrament,  an 
outward  sign  of  a  great  spiritual  reality;  it 
tells  of  the  special  purpose  God  has  for  each 
one  of  us,  of  the  likeness  to  His  Well-be- 
loved Son  that  He  would  have  produced  in 
us,  as  Christ  is  bom  in  each  of  us  by  the 
grace  of  the  Holy  Spirit.  And,  by  degrees, 
as  life  advances  and  develops,  that  name, 
which  expressed  God's  purpose  for  each,  is 
spelt  out,  syllable  by  syllable,  almost  letter 
by  letter,  till  we  come  to  know  fully  what 
that  name  stands  for.  At  our  Confirmation 
or  our  First  Communion;  at  some  great 
upheaval  of  our  life,  some  disappointment, 
sorrow  or  trial;  or  when  spiritual  things 
first  shine  out  as  very  real,  e.g.  at  our  first 
Retreat  or  our  first  Confession,  God  shows 
us  something  of  what  He  would  make  of  our 
life — of  what  we  should  do  with  the  powers 


26  THE  VIRGIN  MOTHER. 

He  has  given  us;  we  learned  a  fresh  syllable, 
as  it  were,  of  our  Baptismal  name.  We 
learn  that  there  is  something  we  can  do — 
some  place  we  are  to  fill — yes,  and  some- 
thing, perhaps,  that  is  shut  out  from  us; 
that  we  are  not  intended  for  this  or  that. 
**  I  am  learning  God's  purpose  and  mind  for 
me"  And  so,  in  deeper  spiritual  things — 
by  the  advice  of  friends,  the  warnings  and 
counsels  of  spiritual  guides,  by  the  voice  of 
conscience — in  all  these  ways  God  is  making 
more  plain  what  He  would  have  me  seek  after, 
what  special  features  of  His  Son's  Life  He 
would  have  me  reproduce.  It  is  only  gradu- 
ally revealed;  in  mercy  He  withholds  all 
that  He  sees  we  could  not  yet  bear.  It 
would  startle  us  and  stun  us  were  we  to 
know  all  that  is  before  us;  the  height  of  our 
vocation  would  overwhelm  us;  were  we  to 
see  the  difficult  steps  by  which  that  height  is 
to  be  attained,  it  would  cause  us  to  de- 
spair ! 

Did  we  but  see 
"When  life  first  open'd,  how  our  journey  lay 
Between  its  earliest  and  its  closing  day ; 


TRAINING  FOR  HER  VOCATION.  27 

Or  view  ourselves,  as  we  one  time  shall  be, 
Who  strive  for  the  high  prize ;  such  sight  would  b^eak 
The  youthful  spirit,  though  bold  for  Jesu's  sake. 

But  thou,  dear  Lord ! 
Whilst  I  traced  out  bright  scenes  which  were  to  come,' 
Isaac's  pure  blessings,  and  a  verdant  home. 

Didst  spare  me,  and  withhold  Thy  fearful  word, 
Wiling  me  year  by  year,  till  I  am  found 
A  pilgrim  pale,  with  Paul's  sad  girdle  bound.* 

So  it  was  with  Blessed  Mary.  Had  she 
known  the  unique  honor  for  which  she  was 
intended,  the  prerogative  that  should  be  hers, 
that  she  should  be  the  Mother  according  to 
the  Flesh  of  the  Eternal  and  Only  Begotten 
Son,  she  must  have  shrunk  back  dismayed. 
But  she  was  gradually  led  on: — '*  What  I  do, 
thou  knowest  not  now,  but  thou  shalt  know 
hereafter."!  Ah!  how  many  meanings 
those  words  of  our  Lord  have !  The  way  by 
which  God  leads  us  seems  often  to  be  so 
dark,  so  puzzling,  so  unmeaning!  Those 
trials,  those  perplexities — why  are  they  ? 
**Thou  shalt  know  hereafter"  what  this  or 
that  was  meant  for — this  check,  that  disap- 
pointment— ''what  I  do" — the  urging  on  to 

*  J.  H.  Newman,  in  Lyra  Apostolica.      f  St.  John  xiii.  7. 


28  THE  VIRGIN  MOTHER. 

this  or  that  way  of  perfection  which  would 
have  raised  you  from  earthly  hopes  to  some- 
thing higher;  or  the  warning  voice,  which 
if  you  had  followed  you  might  have  avoided 
this  or  that  habit  which  did  not  destroy,  per- 
haps, but  which  marred  and  lowered  your 
spiritual  life,  blurred  the  conscience,  and 
kept  you  back  from  perfect  truthfulness, 
perfect  purity !  Alas !  *  *  thou  knowest  not 
now,  but  thou  shalt  know  hereafter" — not 
only  in  another  world,  but  here,  as  we  wake 
up  and  see  how,  if  only  we  had  been  faithful 
to  God's  voice,  we  might  have  been  saved 
this  or  that  stain,  this  or  that  wound,  which 
can  only  now  be  healed  by  long  and  severe 
discipline  of  penitence.  Ah!  if  I  had  only 
followed  this  or  that  inspiration  of  con- 
science— been  true  to  those  means  of  grace — 
made  the  most  of  those  educational  advan- 
tages— how  much  more  capable  I  might 
have  been  now;  how  much  more  I  might 
have  effected,  not  only  for  myself,  but  for 
others!  I  see  now  what  I  might  have  be- 
come but  for  my  own  disobedience  or  negli- 
gence or  disregard  of  warnings. 


TRAINING  FOR  HER  VOCATION.  29 

**What  I  do,  thou  knowest  not  now." 
Yes;  and  there  is  a  brighter  side  to  this. 
As  we  look  back  and  see  this  or  that  thing — 
this  little  disappointment — that  little  trial — 
how  God  wove  it  into  our  life,  how  it  fitted 
in  with  God's  great  purpose,  and  by  it  we 
were  led  on  to  something  better  and  higher. 
Think  of  Blessed  Mary  being  led  on,  step  by 
step,  and  all  unconsciously.  ''The  Lord  is 
with  thee,"  the  Angel  said,  and  therefore  He 
can  come  to  thee  in  closer  and  more  won- 
drous fashion. 

What  is  needed  ?  Just  one  thing  on  our 
part — fidelity,  loving  correspondence.  He 
knows  what  He  is  working  for,  and  it  shall 
surely  be  accomplished,  if  only  we  do  not 
thwart  His  purpose.  ''Whosoever  hath,  to 
him  shall  be  given."*  Step  by  step  we  are 
led  on,  by  a  real  process  of  evolution,  one 
grace  giving  birth  to  another,  each  step 
making  the  next  more  easy  and  more  nat- 
ural; each  step  we  miss  making  the  next 
more  difficult.  Ah !  let  us  look  back  and  see 
God's  dealings  with  us,  praise  Him  for  His 

*St.  Matt.  xiii.  12. 


30  THE  VIRGIN  MOTHER. 

loving  care  and  providence,  bewail  our  want 
of  correspondence  with  His  leadings,  and 
brace  ourselves  with  loving  earnestness  for 
whatever  we  have  now  to  do,  however  hard 
and  difficult,  to  make  up  for  our  past  failures. 

II.  Think  of  Mary's  previous  dedication  of 
herself  to  the  service  of  God.  It  seems  clear 
from  her  response  to  the  Angel,  '*How 
shall  this  be,  seeing  I  know  not  a  man  ? "  * 
that  she  had  as  a  girl  dedicated  her  maiden- 
hood entirely  to  God's  service;  otherwise 
her  response  has  no  meaning.  If  she  had 
been  just  about  to  enter  upon  the  marriage 
state  under  its  ordinary  conditions,  the 
promise  of  a  child  would  have  been  natural. 
She  might  have  wondered  how  it  could 
come  about  that  she  should  have  the  honour 
of  being  the  mother  of  the  Messiah ;  but  she 
asks,  ''How  shall  this  be,"  that  I  become  a 
mother,  "seeing  I  know  not  a  man  ? " 

It  is  not  an  inquiry  of  scepticism  or  doubt, 
like  that  of  Zacharias,  but  of  true  and 
modest    testing    of    the    Angelic    message. 

*  St.  Luke  i.  34. 


TRAINING  FOR  HER  VOCATION.  31 

The  promise  fires  all  her  ambition,  but  how 
can  it  be  harmonized  with  her  previous  vow 
— the  entire  dedication  of  herself  ?  In 
prayer  and  meditation  she  had  learned  of  a 
closer  spiritual  fellowship  with  God,  and 
for  this  she  had  risen  above  the  great  ambi- 
tion of  Jewish  women,  to  be,  at  least,  in  the 
line  of  the  Messiah's  maternal  ancestry.  It 
was  this  hope  which  made  a  single  life  or 
barrenness  to  be  considered  a  curse  or  a 
disgrace  among  Jewish  women.  Mary  had 
risen  above  that;  she  had  foregone  that 
great  hope;  she  looked  for  **a  place  and  a 
name  better  than  of  sons  and  of  daughters;"  * 
she  had  consecrated  herself  wholly  to  God 
that  she  might  wait  upon  Him  without  dis- 
traction. And  because  she  had  foregone 
that  great  hope,  because  she  had  responded 
to  a  higher  call,  and  sought  a  deeper  spirit- 
ual grace,  God  gives  her  the  other  blessing 
also ;  she  shall  be  the  Virgin  Mother  of  the 
Messiah,  of  God's  Incarnate  Son ! 

And  so  in  our  own  life  we  must  be  sepa- 
rated   from    lower    things;    not   only  from 
*  Is.  Ivi.  5. 


32  THE  VIRGIN  MOTHER. 

things  that  are  wrong  and  bad,  but  from 
things  that  are  in  themselves  innocent  and 
good,  but  which  might  prevent  our  rising  up 
to  things  greater  and  higher.  Blessed  Mary 
is  separated  from  the  world  before  she  is  con- 
secrated to  God ;  and  so  must  it  be  with  us. 
This  applies  not  only  to  the  dedicated  life  of 
**  Religious."  In  many  things,  in  one  way 
or  another,  we  may,  any  of  us,  have  to  give 
up  some  great  hope,  some  possibility,  some 
sphere  of  influence  that  opens  out  before  us ; 
we  might  have  it,  we  might  keep  it,  but, 
somehow,  we  feel  it  would  not  be  quite  con- 
sistent with  our  dedication  to  God.  '*  I  am 
kept  back  from  this  or  that  opportunity — 
this  or  that  cherished  plan  of  advancement 
in  the  world — this  or  that  development  of 
my  faculties  and  talents  by  a  higher  duty  to 
which  God  has  called  me.  I  have  to  work 
for  those  near  and  dear  to  me.  I  might  get 
on  in  this  or  that  sphere  of  usefulness,  but  I 
am  held  back  by  conscience ;  I  must  give  up 
something  good  for  something  that  is  really 
better." 

God,  be  sure,  is  never  outdone  in  generos- 


TRAINING  FOR  HER  VOCATION.  33 

ity.  **  There  is  no  man  that  hath  left  house, 
or  brethren,  or  sisters,  or  father,  or  mother, 
or  wife,  or  children,  or  lands,  for  My  sake, 
and  the  Gospel's,  but  he  shall  receive  an 
hundredfold  now  in  this  time,  houses,  and 
brethren,  and  sisters,  and  mothers,  and  chil- 
dren, and  lands,  with  persecutions;  and  in 
the  world  to  come  eternal  life."  * 

Think  of  the  sacrifices  to  which  God  has 
called  you  in  the  past ;  see  how  they  have 
been  blessed ;  how  God  has  led  you  on  by  this 
or  that  dedication  of  yourself  or  of  your  tal- 
ents, to  something  higher  and  better. 

Bishop  Jeremy  Taylor,  in  his  ''Golden 
Grove,"  advises  us  to  make  note  of  four 
great  extraordinaries  in  our  lives,  and  in  our 
seasons  of  special  spiritual  exercises  to  bring 
them  out  before  us. 

i.  The  great  and  shameful  sins  into  which 
we  may  have  fallen,  in  order  to  excite  a 
deeper  repentance  for  them. 

ii.  The  greater  and  more  excellent  acts  of 
virtue  that,  by  God's  grace,  we  have  been 
enabled  to  perform,  in  order  that  we  may 
*  St.  Mark  x.  29,  30. 


34  THE  VIRGIN  MOTHER. 

learn  what  we  can  do  now,  by  God's  grace, 
from  the  consideration  of  what  we  have  done 
in  the  past. 

iii.  The  more  singular  graces  and  blessings 
He  has  vouchsafed  to  us,  to  kindle  our  lov- 
ing gratitude. 

iv.  The  special  vows  and  promises  we  have 
made  to  God;  that  we  may  consider  how  far 
we  have  been  true  and  faithful,  in  the 
past,  and  set  ourselves  to  greater  faithfulness 
in  the  time  to  come. 

Dwell  on  that  second  point.  Consider 
what  God  has  enabled  you  to  do  in  the  past. 
Don't  in  coming  into  Retreat  dwell  too 
much  on  the  shame  and  humiliation  our  sins 
have  brought  upon  f  us ;  there  must,  of 
course,  be  the  humbling  of  ourselves  as  we 
come  face  to  face  with  the  past ;  but  hope — 
look  up ;  your  past  may  be  a  pledge  of  what 
God  will  do  for  you  in  the  future.  Think  of 
the  grace  He  has  given  you,  the  holy  inspira- 
tions He  has  breathed  into  you,  and  how 
**  He  who  has  begun  a  good  work  in  you  will 
perform  it,'*  if  only  you  are  true  and  faithful,* 
*  Phil.  i.  6. 


TRAINING  FOR  HER  VOCATION.  35 

III.  Consider  what  must  have  been  Mary's 
study  of  God's  Word  in  her  early  years^ 
as  shown  by  the  Magnificat.  At  the  Visita- 
tion, when  St.  Elizabeth  saluted  her  with 
such  reverence,  ''Blessed  art  thou  among 
women,  and  blessed  is  the  fruit  of  thy 
womb.  And  whence  is  this  to  me,  that 
the  mother  of  my  Lord  should  come  to 
me  ?  "  *  Mary  at  once  breaks  out  into  her 
song  of  thanksgiving — the  evening  Canticle 
of  the  Church  throughout  all  ages — the 
Magnificat. 

And  the  Magnificat  is  all  based  upon  Han- 
nah's song  of  thanksgiving,  as  recorded  in 
I  Sam.  ii.  Mary  does  not  try  to  be  original, 
her  mind  is  steeped  in  Holy  Scripture;  the 
spiritually-minded  Hannah  inspires  Mary, 
and  the  more  spiritually-minded  Mary  knows 
how  to  make  the  v/ords  her  own,  to  adapt 
them  and  apply  them  with  fuller  meaning 
and  in  thanksgiving  for  a  greater  Gift  than 
that  which  called  forth  Hannah's  song  of 
praise.  All  that  comes  from  Mary's  lips 
wells  up  from  her  heart,  but  all  is  based  on 
*  St.  Luke  i.  42,  43. 


36  THE  VIRGIN  MOTHER. 

the  Old  Testament  psalm.  The  Spirit  uses 
His  former  utterances;  the  Magnificat  is  the 
New  Testament  edition  of  the  Old  Testa- 
ment canticle. 

Consider  how  our  mind  and  heart  ought  to 
be  familiarized  with  God's  former  utterances ; 
how  in  joining  in  the  Divine  Liturgy,  the 
Psalter,  and  in  all  the  utterances  of  the 
Church,  we  ought  to  be  learning,  not  merely 
phrases  of  devotion  for  our  own  devotions 
and  private  use,  but  how  they  should  be^  to 
us  a  real  means  of  approach  to  God,  and 
we  should  adapt  them  to  our  own  personal 
use.  '*  He  that  hath  an  ear,  let  him  hear 
what  the  Spirit  saith  to  the  Churches."  *  Let 
the  Spirit  bring  our  minds  into  harmony 
with  the  minds  and  hearts  of  the  saints  of  all 
ages.  In  this  text  we  have  the  reconciliation 
of  two  truths  that  nowadays  are  so  often 
thought  to  be  contrary — the  Spirit  speaking 
to  the  Church  generally,  and  to  ourselves 
individually.  What  the  Spirit  saith  unto  us 
will  be  in  harmony  with  what  He  has  said  to 
others;  we  can  test  what  we  think  He  says 

*  Rev.  ii.  29. 


TRAINING  FOR  HER  VOCATION.  37 

to  US  by  its  harmony  with  that  which  He  has 
said  to  others. 

And  this  applies  to  the  use  of  manuals  and 
books  of  devotion;  let  us  seek  to  be  abso- 
lutely real  and  natural  in  our  use  of  them. 
It  matters  not  how  good  they  are,  whether 
Bishop  Andrewes',  or  Bishop  Cosin's,  Bishop 
Ken's,  or  Bishop  Taylor's — their  words  are 
not  our  own,  and  in  many  instances  perhaps 
are  too  high  for  us,  we  have  not  yet  risen  to 
them.  Use  them  if  you  please,  but  do  not  be 
content  with  just  using  them ;  adapt  them, 
assimilate  them,  appropriate  them.  A  man- 
ual of  devotion  that  is  used  just  as  it  is 
printed  is  not  worth  much ;  it  ought  to  have 
ever  so  many  lines  scratched  out,  and  many 
others  written  in;  it  must  be  adapted  and 
assimilated  by  different  persons  according  to 
their  several  needs.  Ah  !  make  your  prayers 
real  !  **  I  am  approaching  the  Living  God. 
He  has  His  intention,  His  mind,  His  voca- 
tion for  me.  I  am  to  approach  Him  in  m;- 
devotions  with  my  own  needs,  and  sins,  and 
joys,  and  hopes." 

So  take  these  three  points  for  meditation, 


38  THE  VIRGIN  MOTHER. 

drawn   from  the  story  of  the  Annunciation 
and  the  Visitation : 

i.  God'^s  preparation  of  Blessed  Mary  for 
her  vocation;  her  previous  training,  her  grad- 
ual preparation  for  it;  herself,  meanwhile,  all 
unconscious ;  God  working  out  everything  to 
its  g^eat  end. 

ii.  Her  previous  dedication  of  herself 
iii.  Her    study  and   application   of  God*5 
word;  giving  us  an   example   of  reality  in 
devotion,  in  drawing  near  to  God. 

Let  us  repeat  Psalm  xxv. 


THIRD  MEDITATION. 

THE     ANNUNCIATION     OF     THE     BLESSED    VIRGIN 
MARY. 

Let  us  meditate  on  the  Annunciation. 

Behold  the  Angel  coming  with  his  lofty 
salutation  to  Mary  in  the  lowly  home  of  Naz- 
areth:— *',Hail,  thou  that  art  highly  favoured, 
the  Lord  is  with  thee:  blessed  art  thou 
among  women."  And  Mary,  as  she  surren- 
ders herself  to  the  Divine  vocation,  says, 
**  Behold  the  handmaid  of  the  Lord;  be  it 
unto  me  according  to  thy  word."  * 

'  O  Almighty  God,  Who  hast  fashioned  us 
to  carry  out  Thy  purpose,  that  Thy  Son 
might  be  manifested  in  each  one  of  us; 
grant  us  each  one,  now  and  ever,  to  listen  to 
Thy  voice  and  so  to  yield  ourselves  to  the 
operation  of  Thy  Blessed  Spirit  that  we  may 
indeed  be  conformed  to  the  Image  of  Thy 
Blessed  Son,  that  Thou  mayest  be  glorified 

*  St.  Luke  i.  28-38. 
39 


THE  VIRGIN  MOTHER. 


in  US,  and  that  we  may  find  acceptance  with 
Thee  at  the  last,  through  the  same  Thy  Son 
Jesus  Christ  our  Lord,  Who  liveth  and  reign- 
eth  with  Thee  and  the  Holy  Ghost,  ever  One 
God,  world  without  end.     Amen. 

We  have  meditated  on  the  training  and 
preparation  of  Blessed  Mary  for  her  great 
vocation.  We  come  now  to  consider  the 
story  of  the  great  crisis  of  her  life,  when  (i) 
the  Angel  announced  God's  will  and  purpose 
for  her,  and  (2)  Mary  responded,  **  Behold 
the  handmaid  of  the  Lord;  be  it  unto  me 
according  to  thy  word."  And  then  (3)  the 
consequence  followed,  the  Divine  purpose  is 
accomplished — *' the  Word  was  made  flesh," 
of  her  substance,  **  and  dwelt  among  us."  * 

Let  us  consider  in  the  story  the  three 
great  lessons  of:  i.  Her  prudence;  ii.  Her 
consent;     iii.  Her  self -oblation. 

I.  Consider  the  Prudence  of  Blessed  Mary, 

Think  of  her  first  recorded  word.     Truly, 

she  realized  the  description  in  the  Book  of 

Proverbs     of    the     virtuous     woman    who 

*  St.  John  i.  14. 


THE  ANNU^XIATION.  41 

"openeth  her  mouth  with  wisdom,  and  in 
her  tongue  is  the  law  of  kindness "  * 
**  She  openeth  her  mouth  with  wisdom." 
The  Angel  comes  with  his  lofty  saluta- 
tion, **Hail,  thou  that  art  highly  favoured, 
the  Lord  is  with  thee:  blessed  art  thou 
among  women;"  and  Mary,  in  her  modes- 
ty and  lowliness,  is  troubled  at  his  salu- 
tation, **and  cast  in  her  mind  what  manner 
of  salutation  this  should  be."  She  is  ut- 
terly unconscious  of  the  high  dignity,  the 
wondrous  destiny  that  awaits  her.  The 
Angel  goes  on  with  the  promise  of  a  Son; 
**  Fear  not,  Mary,  for  thou  hast  found 
favour  with  God.  And  behold,  thou  shalt 
conceive  in  thy  womb,  and  bring  forth  a 
Son,  and  shalt  call  his  name  Jesus."  And 
then  she  is  perplexed  and  she  asks,  **How 
shall  this  be,  seeing  I  know  not  a  man  ? " 
The  question  is  not  one  of  scepticism  or  of 
doubt;  but  of  modest  inquiry,  of  a  desire  to 
test  before  she  accepts  the  Angelic  mes- 
sage ;  and  so  it  is  treated  in  an  entirely  differ- 
ent way  from   the    question   of    Zacharias, 

*Prov.  xxxi.  26, 


THE  VIRGIN  MOTHER. 


**What  shall  be  the  sign?"  In  condescen- 
sion to  his  weakness  God  gives  him  a  sign ; 
but  the  sign  manifests  God's  displeasure  at 
his  unbelief ;  he  is  struck  dumb ;  he  goes  out 
of  the  temple  unable  to  speak,  or  even  to 
bless  the  people  in  God's  Name;  he  can 
only  make  a  sign.  When  at  the  child's  cir- 
cumcision he  acts  in  faith  and  obedience, 
and  gives  the  name  which  the  Angel  had 
foretold,  he  recovers  his  speech. 

There  is  nothing  of  this  in  Blessed  Mary; 
she  only  wonders  how  this  great  and  blessed 
promise  can  be  reconciled  with  her  existing 
obligations.  Her  espousal  to  Joseph  is  only 
for  the  shelter  and  protection  of  her  dedi- 
cated maidenhood,  and  she  cannot  under- 
stand the  wondrous  promise  until  the  Angel 
explains  that  it  shall  be  accomplished  with 
no  violation  of  her  holy  estate: — **the  Holy 
Ghost  shall  come  upon  thee,  and  the  power 
of  the  Highest  shall  overshadow  thee,"* 
etc.  Then,  as  soon  as  the  way  is  made 
clear,  and  the  difficulty  removed;  or,  rather, 
when  the  promise  is  seen  not  to  conflict  with 

*  St.  Luke  i.  35. 


THE  ANNUNCIATION.  43 

her  obligations,  immediately  follows  her 
entire  self-surrender;  without  hesitation  she 
replies,  *'  Behold  the  handmaid  of  the  Lord; 
be  it  unto  me  according  to  thy  word."  * 

Now  we  are  to  imitate  Blessed  Mary  in 
h.QT prudence.  When  suggestions  come  to  us, 
whether  of  doctrine  or  of  practice,  we  are  to 
test  them.  When  some  new  form  of  service, 
some  new  rule  of  devotion  or  of  self-dis- 
cipline, or  some  new  belief  is  presented  to 
us,  we  are  not  to  swallow  it  down  with  one 
tremendous  gulp, — nothing  of  the  kind;  we 
are  to  ask  the  question.  How  is  this  to  be  ? 
How  is  this  new  belief  to  be  reconciled  with 
what  God  has  already  taught  me?  Can  this 
idea  be  reconciled  with  the  obligations  that 
are  already  laid  upon  me  ?  We  are  to  be  on 
our  guard  lest  we  be  seduced  (as  was  Mother 
Eve)  by  Satan  transforming  himself  into  an 
angel  of  light  and  coming  to  us  with  mes- 
sages flattering  to  our  self-love.  Do  not 
swallow  down  as  true  everything  you  hear 
in  a  sermon ;  test  it.  The  Bereans  were  com- 
mended when  they  searched  the  Scriptures 

*  St.  Luke  i.  38. 


44  THE  VIRGIN  MOTHER. 

to  see  **  whether  these  things  were  so."* 
And  St.  John  says  we  are  to  '*  try  the  spirits 
whether  they  are  of  God."t  So  with  this 
message — Is  it  from  heaven — an  angel  of 
Grod — or  is  it  a  seducing  spirit  ?  Is  this  fair 
promise  to  lead  me  aside  from  the  strict  path 
of  duty  or  obedience  ?  Our  reason  must 
always  justify  our  obedience.  This  is  not 
rationalistic;  reason  is  never  contrary  to 
faith.  What  is  faith,  after  all  ?  It  is  but 
reason  illumined  by  the  Spirit  of  God. 
Faith  reveals  to  us  that  which  reason  alone 
could  never  guess;  or  faith  makes  certain 
what  reason  made  very  probable.  Faith  and 
reason  can  never  contradict  one  another; 
reason  and  conscience  are  God's  voice  in  the 
human  soul,  and  God  can  never  contradict 
Himself.  The  Word,  who  is  Incarnate  in  the 
fulness  of  grace  and  truth,  is  **the  Light 
which  lighteth  every  man  that  cometh  into 
the  world. "  J  Faith  is  like  a  telescope,  which 
enables  us  to  see  distant  objects  which  the 
naked  eye  could  never  discern,  or  which  it 
could  only  see  dimly  and  in  outline.     So 

♦Acts  xvii.  II.        1 1  St,  John  iv.  i.        J  St.  John  i.  9. 


THE  ANNUNCIATION.  45 

faith  enables  to  see  clearly  that  which  reason 
only  has  a  glimmer  of.  Faith  never  contra- 
dicts reason,  nor  creates  the  object  which  it 
reveals  any  more  than  the  telescope  creates 
the  object  made  visible  in  the  distance. 

Just  so  is  it  with  regard  to  matters  of  prac- 
tice. We  may  be  so  easily  deceived.  This 
or  that  spiritual  project  comes  before  us — 
some  suggestion  of  greater  strictness,  per- 
haps ;  and  yet  it  may  be  only  to  foster  pride. 
We  overreach  ourselves,  undertaking  some- 
thing that  we  can  never  accomplish;  or  we 
undertake  some  distant  duty,  neglecting  that 
which  God  has  placed  close  to  us  in  our  fam- 
ily or  with  our  friends.  **  From  the  deceits 
of  the  world  and  the  flesh  and  the  devil, 
good  Lord,  deliver  us !  "  From  self-love,  and 
from  all  that  leads  us  aside  from  the  plain 
path  of  duty  and  obedience,  good  Lord, 
deliver  us ! 

Our  Blessed  Lord's  Temptation  shows  us 
the  need  of  this  testing,  for  to  such  tempta- 
tions He  was  exposed ;  for  instance,  to  antici- 
pate the  close  of  His  Fast  :*  to  claim  protec- 
*  St.  Matt.  iv.  3,  6, 9. 


46  THE  VIRGIN  MOTHER. 

tion  in  a  way  not  promised;  to  snatch  at 
power  for  a  good  use,  but  not  in  God's 
way. 

How  often  are  we  deceived  like  Mother 
Eve,  instead  of  putting  the  question,  like 
Blessed  Mary;  so  that,  when  that  is  ans- 
wered, we  can  go  on  to  the  second  step. 
**Now,  I  know  this  comes  from  God,  so  I 
must  go  on  and  do  the  will  of  God."  What 
we  take  up  lightly  we  let  go  lightly;  but  if 
we  pause  and  test  the  matter,  then  we  shall 
have  ground  and  cause  for  obedience. 

But  how  may  we  test  these  things  and  be 
delivered  from  self-deception  ? 

We  have  two  safeguards,  i.  By  cherish- 
ing a  spirit  of  constant  faithfulness.  **My 
sheep,"  says  our  Lord,  ''hear  My  voice."* 
They  are  My  sheep  already.  When  I  come 
to  the  sheepfold  and  call,  they  recognize  My 
voice.  And  why  ?  Because  they  have  so 
often  heard  it  before.  Yes;  as  we  listen 
and  obey,  we  learn  to  distinguish  the  voice  of 
God  from  all  other  voices ;  from  that  of  our 
own  self-love,  and  from  all  seducing  spirits. 
*  St.  John  X.  27. 


THE  ANNUNCIATION.  47 

It  is  as  when  we  hear  the  voice  of  some 
dearly-loved  friend  in  the  midst  of  a  crowd, 
it  sounds  above  all  other  voices,  it  rings  out 
distinct  and  clear — **I  know  that  voice;  I 
have  heard  it  so  often  before;  I  could  not 
mistake  it."  Just  so  it  is  with  the  faithful 
soul ;  it  has  gained,  by  listening  and  obeying, 
the  power  of  discerning  God's  voice  from  all 
other  voices ;  it  has  learned  to  distinguish  it 
from  the  seductive  voices  of  the  world.  So 
constant  faithfulness  gives  us  the  power 
of  recognition  and  discrimination. 

2.  Again,  what  God  says  will  always  be  in 
harmony  with  what  He  has  already  said ;  for 
God  cannot  contradict  Himself.  The  new 
vocation,  the  new  teaching,  which  comes 
from  Him,  will  be  the  legitimate  development 
(not  the  contradiction)  of  previous  teach- 
ing; it  will  be  consistent  with  all  that  has 
gone  before.  He  will  not  call  in  different 
ways.  True,  He  may  keep  us  waiting,  and 
by  so  doing  He  may  be  preparing  us  for  His 
call  to  enter  upon  something  in  the  future 
that  we  cannot  yet  take  in  hand,  and  we 
have  to  wait  until  the  outward  tokens  of  His 


48  THE  VIRGIN  MOTHER. 

Providence  correspond  with  the  inward  call 
of  Grace;  then,  when  the  two  coincide,  we 
have  a  perfect  moral  assurance.  For  in- 
stance :  A  young  woman  thinks  she  has  been 
drawn  by  God  to  devote  herself  to  the  Relig- 
ious Life;  yet  at  present  she  has  other 
duties  to  fulfil.  In  her  home,  perhaps,  there 
are  younger  children  to  teach  and  care  for ; 
or  parents  who  need  her  aid  and  sympathy ; 
or  perhaps  the  express  will  of  others  hold 
her  back;  she  has  checks.  Then  she  has  no 
right  to  enter  upon  this  new  experience. 
Let  her  by  all  means  cherish  the  thought 
and  keep  herself  free  from  other  ties;  she 
may  be  training  herself  in  exercises  of 
prayer  and  self-discipline  for  a  more  entire 
dedication  of  herself;  but  not,  remember,  by 
acting  as  a  sort  of  demi-semi  Sister  of  Mercy 
with  rules  and  practices  unsuited  to  her  ac- 
tual position,  instead  of  being  a  loving  sister 
or  a  good  daughter  in  the  world.  Do  your 
duty  perfectly,  soundly,  in  whatever  state 
God  has  placed  you,  and  then  you  will  be 
ready  to  be  called  on  to  whatever  else  He 
has  in  store  for  you. 


THE  ANNUNCIATION.  49 

And  so  with  the  call  to  the  Priesthood. 
There  is  an  earnest  desire  in  a  young  man  to 
devote  himself  to  the  ministry;  but  he  has 
not  the  intellectual  gifts,  or  the  training 
necessary  for  it;  and  so  he  is  held  back. 
But  the  thought  has  not  come  to  him  for 
nothing,  and  it  is  not  to  be  lightly  put  aside ; 
no,  it  is  intended  to  lead  him  on  to  some 
higher  self-dedication,  to  a  more  recollected, 
devoted  life,  to  whatever  God  may  have  in 
store  for  him.  We  may  be  mistaken  as  to 
the  outward  form  in  which  any  call  is  to  be 
realized,  but  its  inner  spiritual  significance 
remains. 

So  think  of  those  two  safeguards  with 
which  we  are  to  be  armed  against  deluding 
self-love,  and  enabled  to  discern  God's  will 
for  us,  as  we  consider  the  example  of 
Mary's  prudence^  as  she  asks,  ''How  shall 
this  be  ? "  /.  e.  how  is  it  to  be  reconciled 
with  existing  obligations  ? 

II.  Let  us  go  on  to  consider  her  answer  in 
her  second  word,  and  learn  a  lesson  from  her 
Consent. 


50  THE  VIRGIN  MOTHER. 

Having  been  assured,  she  says  "  Behold 
the  handmaid  of  the  Lord;  be  it  unto  me 
according  to  thy  word."  *  It  was  in  Mary's 
power  to  have  refused.  The  Incarnation 
might  have  been  delayed,  and  another  instru- 
ment would  have  to  be  found,  furnished  and 
prepared  for  God's  work.  The  Creator  will 
not  act  in  this  great  mystery  without  the 
creature's  full  consent.  The  Omnipotent 
stands  on  ceremony  with  his  own  finite 
creature;  He  waits  for  Mary's  consent. 

Yes;  God  has  raised  us  to  too  great  a 
dignity  to  use  us  as  mere  blind  instruments 
for  His  purpose,  whether  for  the  carrying  out 
of  some  great  external  work,  or  for  the 
accomplishment  of  His  work  within  the 
soul.  He  has  bestowed  on  us  the  awful  but 
blessed  prerogative  of  Free  Will.  Here  is 
the  explanation  of  that  which  so  often  per- 
plexes us  about  temptation.  *'  Why  does 
God  allow  evil  ?  If  he  wants  me  to  be  good, 
why  does  He  allow  it  to  be  possible  to  be 
bad  ? "  The  answer  is  plain :  We  cannot 
be  really  good  without    the    possibility  of 

*  St.  Luke  i.  38. 


THE  ANNUNCIATION.  51 

being  bad.  We  might  serve  God  with  all 
the  mechanical  obedience  of  the  heavenly- 
bodies  ;  but  the  simple  obedience  of  a  little 
child  is  immeasurably  above  that,  because  it 
4s  not  a  mechanical  but  a  moral  obedience. 
So  God  would  have  us  become  good  by 
choosing  goodness,  not  as  slaves,  but  as 
friends,  who  choose  justice,  goodness,  obedi- 
ence, and  so  become  just,  good,  and  obedi- 
ent. We  beco7ne  that  which  we  choose.  So 
did  the  blessed  Angels  become  good;  they 
passed  through  their  probation,  they  chose 
God,  and  they  stood  firm  in  grace ;  the  others 
refused — refused  God  as  the  Law  of  their 
being,  and  they  are  forever  parted  from  Him. 
And  so  man  has  to  choose,  throughout  the 
probation  of  his  earthly  life.  God  never 
forces  our  will.  He  comes  to  us,  as  He  sent 
the  Angel  Gabriel  to  Blessed  Mary,  waiting 
for  our  consent ;  as  He  came  to  Matthew  at 
the  receipt  of  custom ;  he  was  called  to  fol- 
low Jesus,  he  might  have  remained  a  tax- 
gatherer,  but  by  an  act  of  willing  obedience 
**  he  left  all,  rose  up  and  followed  Him."  *  So 
*  St.  Luke  V.  28. 


52  THE  VIRGIN  MOTHER. 

was  the  rich  young  man  called;  the  choice 
was  given  him,  he  was  unwilling,  and  so  he 
was  allowed  to  go  away  sorrowful.*  So  was 
Judas  called.  The  Master  spent  on  him  all 
His  loving  care;  he  falls  away  because  he 
was  not  "obedient  unto  the  heavenly  vision " 
granted  him.f  God  never,  never  forces  our 
will.  Herein  is  holiness — in  doing  the  will 
of  God,  in  being  conformed  thereto;  herein 
is  sin — in  withholding  self  from  the  will  of 
God.  It  matters  not  what  the  subject-mat- 
ter may  be ;  it  may  be  in  some  tremendous 
struggle,  or  in  some  trifling  concern  that  the 
choice  comes;  if  conscience  tells  us  this  or 
that  is  wrong,  and  we  do  not  heed,  it  is  the 
breaking  away  from  the  will  of  God.  The 
vocation  comes,  God  speaks  plainly,  lovingly, 
entreatingly,  but  He  won't  constrain  us;  He 
will  have  the  homage  of  our  loving  choice. 
Think  of  this  as  true,  not  only  in  the  great 
crises  of  life,  in  times  of  some  moral  up- 
heaval, some  great  conversion,  but  it  is  like- 
wise true  in  the  continual  actions  of  daily 
life.  It  is  true,  also,  as  regards  our  recep- 
*  St.  Luke  xviii.  23.  f  Acts  xxvi.  19. 


THE  ANNUNCIATION:  53 

tion  of  sacramental  grace.  The  Angel 
comes,  as  he  came  to  Blessed  Mary,  that  we, 
like  Blessed  Mary,  may  yield  ourselves  in 
order  that  God's  work  of  grace  may  be  ac- 
complished in  us;  but  we  must  work  along 
with  God.  We  thought  of  the  necessity  of 
real,  personal  communion  with  God  in 
Prayer;  so  must  it  be  in  the  reception  of 
the  Sacraments ;  they  do  not  act  as  charms ; 
they  have  their  place,  they  are  means  to 
ends,  but  they  are  not  ends  in  themselves. 
Never  confound  means  with  ends.  The 
Sacraments  are  the  covenanted  means  of 
grace,  but  we  must  **  open  our  mouth  wide" 
if  we  would  be  filled;  we  must  come  with 
right  dispositions,  we  must  *  *  hunger  and 
thirst  after  righteousness,  "*  if  we  are  to  be 
filled.  Thus,  for  instance,  in  making  con- 
fession; it  is  not  the  mere  going,  or  the 
recounting  our  sins  that  avails;  we  must 
come  with  real  sorrow  and  desire  for  par- 
don ;  we  must  for  our  part  put  away  the  sin 
by  true  repentance  that  Almighty  God  may 
put  it  away  on  His  part  by  an  act  of  forgive- 
*St.  Matt.  V.  6. 


54  THE  VIRGIN  MOTHER. 

ness  and  cleansing.  Absolution  will  never 
stand  in  place  of  contrition.  There  is  no 
more  deadly  snare  than  confession  without 
repentance.  There  is  an  old  Latin  motto 
which  says :  Tanta  gratia  quanta  dispositio — 
the  grace  we  receive  will  be  in  proportion  to 
the  dispositions  with  which  we  come.  *  *  Open 
thy  mouth  wide,  and  I  will  fill  it."*  We 
must  yield  ourselves  to^the  operations  of  the 
Holy  Spirit;  laying  the  skin  of  our  soul  bare, 
so  to  speak,  that  the  Finger  of  God  may 
touch  and  heal  and  cleanse  it. 

So  think  of  the  lesson  of  Mary's  Consent 
— ^her  yielding  of  herself  to  the  Divine 
vocation. 

III.  Think  of  the  Self-Oblation  of  Blessed 
Mary^  and  what  that  consent  involved. 

She  must  have  foreseen  something  of  what 
the  acceptance  of  the  Angel's  message  in- 
volved. In  her  study  of  the  prophetic  Scrip- 
tures she  must  have  gained  some  real  knowl- 
edge of  what  the  Messiah  was  to  be,  and  of 
the  nature  of   His  work.     She  had  not  a 

*  Ps.  Ixxxi.  lo. 


THE  ANNUNCIATION.  55 

mere  earthly  conception  of  His  career,  such 
as  the  Scribes  and  Pharisees  had.  She  must 
have  known  that  the  Messiah  was  to  be  **a 
Man  of  Sorrows  and  acquainted  with  grief."* 
She  must  have  known  that  the  shadow  of 
the  Cross  would  fall  on  those  near  to  Him, 
that  the  Mother  of  the  Man  of  Sorrows  must 
be  the  Mater  Dolorosa;  that,  in  some  way  or 
another,  the  sword  would  pierce  her  own 
soul.f  She  must  have  seen,  too,  in  rapid 
forethought,  what  the  acceptance  of  the 
Angel's  message  involved  for  her  in  the  near 
future — the  shame — the  hard  thoughts — the 
suspicion  of  her  fall — ah!  how  exquisitely 
painful  to  her  pure  soul!  But  it  is  God's 
call,  and  at  whatever  cost  it  must  be 
obeyed.  Yes;  think  what  was  involved  in 
those  words  of  self-surrender.  **  Be  it  unto 
me  according  to  thy  word."  Mary  ac- 
cepted the  sacrifice  of  that  which  is  dearer  to 
a  young  maiden  than  her  very  life,  and  here- 
by she  becomes  pre-eminently  the  heroine  of 
Israel,  the  ideal  daughter  of  Zion,  the  per- 
fect type  of  human  receptivity  in  regard  to 
*Is.  liii.  3.  t  St.  Luke  ii.  35. 


56  THE  VIRGIN  MOTHER. 

the  Divine  work.  She  shows  herself  to  be 
indeed  a  true  daughter  of  Abraham,  the 
father  of  the  faithful,  ready  to  go  forth 
wherever  God  directs,  even  to  unknown 
lands — to  darkness,  perplexity  and  shame  !  * 
So  we,  too,  have  to  yield  ourselves  to  the 
Divine  vocation ;  to  a  greater  strictness  of  life, 
to  some  work  of  charity,  some  fuller  mani- 
festation of  the  truth  of  God,  at  the  expense 
of  obloquy,  at  the  cost  of  separation  from 
those  near  and  dear  to  us — and  God  knows 
what  it  costs  us  to  cut  ourselves  off  from 
them!  Yet  it  must  be  done;  we  must  act, 
like  Blessed  Mary,  on  the  principle  of  faith, 
leaving  consequences  to  Him.  Mary  could 
not  see  how  she  was  to  be  carried  through  or 
provided  for;  but  she  knew  that  He  was 
faithful  who  had  called  her,  and  she  placed 
herself  in  His  hands.  Is  there  any  more 
comfortable  word  in  Holy  Scripture  than 
this: — **  Faithful  is  He  that  calleth  you, 
who  also  will  do  it."  f  Because  He  is  faith- 
ful, strength  will  be  given  sufficient  to 
carry  out  that  which  is  commanded. 

*  Godet  on  St.  Luke's,    f  *  Thess.  v.  24. 


THE  ANNUNCIATION.  57 

There  must  be  neither  eager,  vain,  pre- 
sumptuous snatching  at  high  things;  nor  a 
cowardly  holding  back  when  God  calls. 

We  will  test  the  suggestion  that  comes  to 
us.  When  once  we  are  assured  that  it  is 
from  God,  there  is  only  one  response  we 
can  make, 

"Behold  the  handmaid  of  the  Lord,  be  it 
unto  me  according  to  thy  word!" — **Lord, 
what  wilt  thou  have  me  to  do  ? "  * 

With  such  thoughts  let  us  repeat  Psalm 
xvi. 

*Acts  iz.  6. 


FOURTH   MEDITATION. 

THE   VISITATION    OF    THE    BLESSED    VIRGIN 
MARY. 

Let  us  meditate  upon  the  Visitation  of  the 
Blessed  Virgin  Mary.  Contemplate  Mary 
singing  the  Magnificat  in  the  house  of  Zach- 
arias  and  Elizabeth. 

O  Almighty  God,  Who  hast  called  us  near 
to  Thyself  in  the  covenant  of  grace,  and  hast 
bestowed  upon  us  countless  gifts  of  gprace, 
grant  us,  we  pray  Thee,  so  to  meditate  on 
all  Thy  goodness  that  we  may  return  to 
Thee  the  homage  of  our  loving  gratitude; 
and,  praising  Thee  for  Thy  mercy  in  the 
past,  may  learn  to  trust  Thee  for  the  time 
to  come. 

Our  Father. 

All  the  subjects  on  which  we  have  already 
meditated  in  connection  with  the  early  life 
of  the  Blessed  Virgin  Mary — her  predestina- 

58 


THE  VISITATION.  59 

tion,  her  training,  and  the  Annunciation — 
all  these  belong  to  the  Joyful  Mysteries  of 
the  Incarnation,  as  they  are  called,  as  dis- 
tinguished from  the  Sorrowful  Mysteries,  in 
which  she  shared  the  Passion  of  her  Son;  as, 
in  the  Glorious  Mysteries,  she  shared  His 
Triumph. 

And  the  mystery  of  the  Visitation,  on 
which  we  are  now  to  meditate,  is  pre-emi- 
nently a  Mystery  of  Joy.  Mary  hastens  to 
communicate  her  wondrous  joy  to  her  cousin 
Elizabeth,  and  to  congratulate  her  relative  on 
the  joy  that  has  come  to  her  after  such  long 
waiting.  And^  Elizabeth  welcomes  St.  Mary 
with  reverent  joy.  **  Blessed  art  thou 
among  women,  and  blessed  is  the  fruit  of 
thy  womb.  And  whence  is  this  to  me  that 
the  mother  of  my  Lord  should  come  to 
me  ? "  *  Her  unborn  child  recognizes  the 
unborn  Saviour,  and  at  Mary's  salutation 
the  babe  leaped  in  his  mother's  womb  for 
joy;  while  Mary  bursts  out  into  her  canticle 
of  joy — "My  soul  doth  magnify  the  Lord 
and  my    spirit    hath    rejoiced    in  God  my 

*  St.  Luke  i.  48. 


6o  THE  VIRGIN  MOTHER. 

Saviour."  The  whole  visit  is  a  time  of  joy, 
beginning  and  ending  with  a  canticle;  be- 
ginning with  Mary's  Magnificat^  and  ending 
with  Zacharias'  Benedictus,  in  which  he 
poured  out  the  result  of  all  those  medita- 
tions which  had  filled  his  mind  during  that 
nine  months  solitude  and  silence,  in  which 
he  had  been,  as  it  were,  keeping  his  Retreat, 
pondering  the  ancient  prophecies  which  the 
Angel  told  him  were  about  to  be  fulfilled; 
and  in  the  fulfilment  of  which  his  promised 
son  was  to  play  so  prominent  a  part  as  the 
herald  of  the  Messiah.  Dwell  upon  the  holy 
joy  of  those  three  months  which  Mary  spent 
in  the  house  of  Zacharias  and  Elizabeth; 
think  of  the  converse  between  those  holy 
souls  during  that  time. 

So  let  us  think  of  Mary's  joy,  and  of  its 
lessons  for  ourselves. 

I.  Consider  the  Magnificat  as  the  express 
sion  of  her  joy,  called  forth  by  Elizabeth's 
recognition,  which  gives  a  sanction,  as  it 
were,  to  what  the  Angel  had  said,  and  by 
which  Mary's  own  faith  is  confirmed. 


THE  VISITATION.  6i 

And  Mary's  joy  is  to  be  a  lesson  of  joy  for 
us: — 

Our  Lady  sings  Magnificat 
•  In  tones  surpassing  sweet ; 
And  all  the  Virgins  bear  their  part, 
Sitting  about  her  feet — 

not  merely  in  heaven,  but  in  the  kingdom 
of  heaven  on  earth.  Mary  is  the  cantrix  of 
the  Church  on  earth,  and  all  saints  take  up 
the  canticle  which  she  begins — *'My  soul 
doth  magnify  the  Lord."  The  Magnificat  is 
the  first  canticle  of  the  New  Testament, 
standing  in  the  Gospel  story  before  Zacha- 
rias*  Benedictus^  or  Simeon's  Nunc  Dimittis^ 
or  the  Angels'  Gloria  in  Excelsis,  just  as  it 
begins  each  festival  in  Church,  as  **  the 
evening  and  the  morning  are  the  first  day,"* 
giving  tone  and  key,  as  it  were,  to  all  the 
days  of  our  life. 

Think  of  Mary  singing  the  Magnificat, 
(i)  as  the  'representative  of  humanity,  the 
second  Eve;  (2)  as  the  representative  of  the 
Church,  in  thanksgiving  for  the  Incarnation. 
Think  of  her  singing  the  Magnificat  as  an 
*  Gen.  i.  5. 


62  THE  VIRGIN  MOTHER. 

act  of  praise  for  all  the  gifts  of  grace  and 
for  the  hope  of  glory  vouchsafed  to  us. 
(3)  Think  of  her  singing  the  Magnificat  as 
an  act  of  homage,  of  personal  thanksgiving 
for  the  great  things  God  had  done  for 
her. 

And  with  her  we  are  to  join  in  singing 
Magnificat^  (i)  for  all  humanity;  (2)  for 
the  Church  collectively ;  and  (3)  for  ourselves 
individually.  Two  great  causes  for  personal 
joy  are  shadowed  forth  in  the  Magnificat,  for 
Mary  and  for  us. 

i.  It  is  the  expression  of  Mary's  joy  for 
what  God  had  done  for  her  in  His  choice  of 
her;  for  her  unique  privilege  of  being  the 
Mother  of  the  Incarnate  Son — '*  all  genera- 
tions shall  call  me  blessed." 

And  so  for  ourselves  also.  Think  of  our 
vocation,  of  God's  predestination  and  elec- 
tion of  us,  to  be  born  in  a  Christian  land, 
within  reach  of  the  Sacraments  and  means 
of  grace,  to  a  growing  and  fuller  apprecia- 
tion of  all  the  treasures  and  fruits  of  grace 
stored  up  in  the  Catholic  Church.  Think  of 
our  sheltered  homes,  our  educational  advan- 


THE  VISITATION.  63 

tages,  our  spiritual  privileges.  And  what 
am  I,  that  I  should  have  been  singled  out  to 
be  bom  in  a  Christian  land  rather  than  in 
Central  Africa,  and  in  the  Catholic  Church 
rather  than  under  some  imperfect  system; 
that  I  should  have  been  baptized  in  infancy 
and  brought  within  reach  of  all  the  gifts  of 
grace  provided  for  me?  "Ye  have  not 
chosen  Me,  but  I  have  chosen  you."  *  What 
am  I,  that  such  loving  kindness  should  have 
been  shown  to  me  ?  Do  we  thank  God  for 
the  gifts  of  grace  which  surround  us  so 
commonly,  or  do  we  take  them  as  a 
matter  of  course  ?  Do  we  join  in  the 
thanksgiving,  that  God  has  **  called  us  to 
the  knowledge  of  this  grace  and  faith  in 
Him?"t 

Jesu,  what  didst  Thou  find  in  me, 
That  Thou  hast  dealt  so  lovingly  ? 

ii.  Then  think  of  the  second  great  cause 
of  personal  joy,  for  ourselves  as  well  as  for 
Blessed  Mary. 

It  was  her  act  of  praise  for  the  beginning 
*St.  John  XV.  16.  t  Baptismal  Service. 


64  THE  VIRGIN  MOTHER. 

of  God's  work  in  her^  and  she  is  confident 
that  He  will  accomplish  and  perfect  that 
which  He  has  begun. 

And  we  are  to  thank  Him  for  what  He  has 
done  in  and  for  us ;  not  only  for  His  gifts  of 
grace  all  around  and  about  us,  but  for  His 
work  within.  As  we  thought  in  an  earlier 
meditation,  and  as  Bishop  Jeremy  Taylor 
tells  us,  we  are  not  only  to  meditate  on  the 
shameful  sins  into  which  we  have  fallen,  but 
we  are  also  to  praise  Him  for  all  the  acts  of 
virtue  we  have  been  enabled  by  His  grace 
to  perform.  Ah !  yes ;  don't  think  it  humility 
to  disparage  grace,  but  thank  God  for  what 
He  has  done  in  and  by  you ;  don't  shut  your 
eyes  to  it ;  it  is  the  part  of  true  humility  to 
look  every  fact  in  the  face,  to  see  it  in  its 
true  light ;  to  recognize  every  gift  of  nature 
and  of  grace,  and  then  to  realize  our  re- 
sponsibility for  the  right  use  of  all,  our 
responsibility  to  God  from  whom  they  come, 
and  to  our  fellow-creatures  for  whom  they 
are  bestowed.  It  is  not  humility  to  shut 
our  eyes  to  an5r  fact.  Yes;  **  He  that  is 
mighty  hath   done    to  me  great  things" — 


THE  VISITATION.  65 

Mary  refers  all  to  Him — **  and  "  therefore 
**holy  is  His  Name." 

St.  Paul  recognizes  this,  how  God  had 
worked  in  Him;  he  had  *' laboured  more 
abundantly  than  all "  the  other  apostles — 
**yet  not  I,  but  the  grace  of  God  which 
was  with  me."  * 

Learn,  then,  the  lesson  of  thanksgiving. 
It  is  due  to  God,  it  is  due  to  yourselves. 
Thanksgiving  for  the  past  makes  us  trustful 
in  the  present  and  hopeful  for  the  future. 
What  He  has  done  is  the  pledge  of  what  He 
will  do.  You  notice  how  St.  Paul,  in  all  his 
epistles,  after  his  introductory  salutation, 
thanks  God  for  all  that  He  has  already  done 
in  those  to  whom  he  had  ministered;  and 
then,  in  the  strength  of  that  thanksgiving, 
he  is  full  of  assurance  that  He  who  has  be- 
gun a  good  work  in  them  *  *  will  perform  it 
until  the  day  of  Jesus  Christ."  f 

See  how  in  the  Lord's  Prayer,  before  we 

ask  anything  for  ourselves,  we  are  taught  to 

say,  *' Hallowed  be  Thy  Name."     We  are 

first  to  thank  God  for  what  He  has  done; 

*  I  Cor.  XV.  10.  t  ?^-  i-  ^' 


66  THE  VIRGIN  MOTHER. 

and  then,  after  this,  we  go  on  to  ask,  in  sim- 
ple, childlike  trust,  for  all  we  need. 

Our  petitions  are  often  so  faint  because 
our  thanksgiving  is  so  lacking.  What 
strength  should  praise  and  thanksgiving 
bring  into  our  lives!  What  causes  for 
thanksgiving  we  have!  shelter  and  protec- 
tion in  our  early  years,  opportunities  and 
advantages  for  preserving  our  innocence 
and  cleansing  us  from  evil !  Both  are  due  to 
"God  our  Saviour,"  in  whom  we  rejoice. 
He  recalled  me  when  I  wandered.  He  re- 
ceived me  when  I  returned;  He  raised  me 
when  I  fell.  He  upheld  me  when  I  stood. 
**  My  soul  doth  magnify  the  Lord." 

Think,  then,  how  our  life  ought,  in- 
deed, to  be  a  life  of  joy,  brought  so  near 
to  God.  ''The  joy  of  the  Lord  is  your 
strength."  * 

Think  of  those  words  from  Nehemiah  as 
affording  a  sort  of  antiphon  to  the  Magnifi- 
cat— the  Song  of  Christian  life — **  the  joy  of 
the  Lord  is  your  strength."  Ah!  cherish 
that  thought.     Don't  let  your  Christian  life 

*  Nehem.  viii.  lo. 


THE  VISITATION.  67 

be  sad;  don't  let  it  create  an  impression  of 
sadness  or  gloom  on  any  around  you. 

Think  of  the  Offices  and  Services  of  the 
Christian  Church,  how  full  of  joy  they  are. 
Think  of  the  great  Eucharistic  Feast,  where- 
in we  show  forth  in  glad  exultation  Christ's 
Death  and  the  great  things  He  hath  done, 
and  thank  Him  for  His  Glorious  Resurrec- 
tion. And  in  the  Offices  of  the  Church, 
what  a  large  proportion  of  praise  there  is  in 
the  Psalms  and  Canticles !  And  then,  in  the 
strength  of  that  praise,  we  offer  supplica- 
tions. The  law  of  worship  is  to  be  the  law 
of  life.  We  are  to  go  forth  from  the  wor- 
ship of  the  sanctuary  to  render  the  service  of 
our  daily  life ;  Mary's  Magnificat  giving  the 
key  to  the  Christian  life  as  it  stands  in  the 
very  forefront  of  the  New  Testament — to  a 
life  of  joy.  The  Christian  life  should  be 
**  steadfast  in  faith,  joyful  through  hope,  and 
rooted  in  charity."  * 

That  is  the  mark  impressed  on  it  from  the 
very  first,  at  the  Baptismal  Font.  How 
often  have  we  been  untrue  to  it !     Even  in 

*  Baptismal  Service. 


68  THE  VIRGIN  MOTHER. 

our  penitence  there  is  to  be  joy;  however 
far  off  we  may  have  wandered,  even  to  a 
far  country,  yet  when  we  have  set  our  faces 
to  return,  and  are  turned  in  the  right  direc- 
tion, the  gleams  of  light  from  our  Father's 
Home  will  shine  through  the  darkness 
of  the  night;  and,  looking  toward  the 
Father's  Home,  we  may  be  glad  even  in  our 
penitence.  **  I  will  arise  and  go  to  my 
Father."  * 

II.  Consider  Mary's  joy  over  flowing  at  the 
Visitatio7i.  She  hastens  on  the  hint  of  the 
Angel  to  Elizabeth,  as  the  old  Collect  for 
the  festival  of  the  Visitation  says,  **for  mu- 
tual consolation;"  she  congratulates  her 
cousin  on  the  joy  that  has  come  to  her; 
and  gives  her  cause  for  still  higher  joy,  as 
she  tells  the  Angel's  message  to  herself. 

In  the  Magnificat  Mary's  joy  soon  passes 
from  the  thought  of  herself,  to  that  which  all 
generations  are  to  gain  through  her,  to  what 
God  will  do  for  His  people  through  her  and 
by  her.  And  here  we  are  to  learn  a  lesson: 
*  St.  Luke  XV.  1 8. 


THE  VISITATION.  69 

as  the  joy  of  the  Lord  enters  into  our  lives 
we  are  not  to  be  selfish,  to  hug  our  own  joy. 
**Ah,  I  can  thank  God— I  am  safe!"  The 
experiences  vouchsafed  to  us  are  not  to  be 
for  ourselves  only,  but  for  others.  Think  oi 
St.  Paul's  words,  * '  Whether  we  be  afflicted, 

it  is  for  your  consolation or 

whether  we  be  comforted,  it  is  for  your  con- 
solation and  salvation."  *  Yes,  all  our  expe- 
riences are  to  quicken  our  sympathy  for 
others — that  we  may  be  able  to  impart  to 
others  that  which  God  has  bestowed  on  us. 
Think  of  what  St.  John  says:  *'  These  things 
write  we  unto  you  .  .  .  that  your  joy 
might  be  full."t 

That  is  the  very  law  of  the  Church's  mis- 
sion, for  every  man  and  woman  in  the  Church 
— to  do  our  part  to  call  others  into  the  same 
fellowship  in  which  we  are  seeking  to  abide, 
to  lead  others  to  the  means  of  grace  we  our- 
selves prize,  to  warn  them  against  the  dan- 
gers the  reality  of  which  we  have  ourselves 
learned,  to  lead  them  along  paths  we  our- 
selves are  treading. 

*  2  Cor.  i.  6.  1 1  St.  John  i.  4. 


70  THE  VIRGIN  MOTHER. 

Think  of  the  years  of  education,  the  tal- 
ents, the  influence,  the  sheltered  home,  the 
protection  in  early  years  that  have  been 
vouchsafed  to  you  in  order  that  you  may  im- 
part your  knowledge  and  influence,  your 
purity  and  faith  to  others  also.  All  our  gifts 
of  nature  and  of  grace  are  bestowed  upon  us 
for  our  mutual  good.  This  is  true  Christian 
Socialism;  not  the  silly  Communism  that 
would  drag  all  down  to  one  mean  level;  but 
the  recognition  that  all  gifts  coming  from  a 
common  Father,  are  bestowed  for  the  com- 
mon good  of  all  the  children  of  that  Father. 
All  our  gifts  are  to  be  exercised  and  culti- 
vated for  the  good  of  all ;  we  have  no  busi- 
ness to  use  and  keep  any  for  our  own  selfish 
gratification,  but  we  are  to  use  all  for  the 
common  good.  Others  have  a  right  to  ex- 
pect from  us  what  our  common  Father  has 
bestowed  on  us.  They  have  a  right  to  share 
my  joy.  We  are  stewards  of  God's  manifold 
gifts,  which  are  all  bestowed  for  the  com- 
mon good.  So  let  me  ask  myself,  **  Have  I 
done  this  ?  Has  my  Christian  joy,  my  faith, 
my  education,  overflowed  like  Mary's  joy  to 


THE  VISITATION.  71 

others  ? "  See  how  the  spirit  of  the  Incarnate 
Saviour  was  at  once  shown  forth  in 
Mary.  He  came  down  from  Heaven  to 
earth  "for  us  men  and  for  our  sal- 
vation," that  we  **  might  have  life  and 
have  it  more  abundantly."*  He  fills  her 
with  His  own  Spirit  of  love.  *'  In  her 
tongue  is  the  law  of  kindness."  And  we, 
too,  are  to  be  Christophers — Christ-bearers — 
bringing  Him  to  gladden  others'  lives. 
Think  of  this  in  guild-work,  in  parish-work, 
in  any  missionary  enterprise.  I,  like  Mary, 
am  to  carry  Christ  to  others,  that,  as  the 
spirit  of  the  Incarnation  was  shown  forth  in 
Mary  at  the  Visitation,  so  the  power  of  the 
Incarnation  may  be  shown  forth  in  my  con- 
tact with  others,  as  in  hers,  as  we  bring 
Christ  to  them,  and  Christ  brings  life  and  joy. 
"When  Elizabeth  heard  the  salutation  of 
Mary,  the  babe  leaped  in  her  womb  for 
joy."t  Yes;  there  is  to  be  no  selfishness, 
no  isolation  in  our  Christian  life,  we  are  to 
rejoice  in  others'  good.  So  think  of  the 
mutual    consolation    of   Blessed    Mary   and 

*  St.  John  X.  10.  I  St.  Luke  i.  44. 


72  THE  VIRGIN  MOTHER. 

Elizabeth.  *'  Come  hither  and  hearken 
unto  me,  all  ye  that  fear  God,  and  I  will 
tell  you  what  he  hath  done  for  my  soul."* 
That  is  the  spirit  of  the  Visitation.  Christ 
in  me  is  to  overcome  my  natural  shyness. 
We  English  people  have  a  healthy  dislike  to 
cant,  we  don't  wear  our  hearts  on  our 
sleeves ;  but  we  stand  in  the  opposite  danger 
of  having  a  false  shame  in  matters  of  relig- 
ion. Let  us  try  to  put  aside  our  natural  re- 
serve and  shyness,  and  be  ready  to  commu- 
nicate to  others  that  which  we  value  for 
ourselves,  that  which  makes  life  tolerable 
amid  all  our  sorrows,  that  which  has  given 
us  light  in  its  dark  places,  that  which  has 
cheered  us  when  otherwise  we  should  have 
sunk  down  in  sorrow  and  despair.  "O 
praise  the  Lord  with  me,  and  let  us  magnify 
His  Name  together."  f  This  is  the  spirit  of 
the  Visitation. 

in.  Think  of  Marfs  joy  in  the  midst  of 
outward  sorrow  as  exemplified  by  her  Mag- 
nificat. 

*Ps.  Ixvi.  1 6.  f  Ps.  xxxiv.  3. 


THE  VISITATION.  73 

Ah !  it  is  all  well  enough  in  that  quiet, 
contented  home  in  Hebron,  with  sympa- 
thizing friends  to  whom  an  Angel  has  been 
with  a  message  of  joy.  But  soon  she  is  to 
go  back  to  Nazareth,  to  face  the  shame  and 
disgrace  that  awaited  her — Joseph's  suspi- 
cion, the  finger  of  scorn  pointed  at  her  by 
that  rough,  rude  population — **ah!  she  is 
no  better  than  others  !"  Yet  she  sings  Mag- 
nificat; she  trusts  herself  to  God's  loving 
care,  because  **  tribulation  worketh  patience, 
and  patience  experience;" — what  we  have 
endured  teaches  us  what  we  can  endure ;  and 
experience  begets  hope,  and  that  hope  will 
not  fail  or  disappoint  us  because  of  the 
**love  of  God  shed  abroad  in  our  hearts 
by  the  Holy  Ghost  which  is  given  unto  us."* 

Think  of  cherishing  that  spirit  of  **  joy  in 
the  Lord"  in  the  midst  of  outward  sorrow; 
in  temptation,  in  failure,  in  times  of  anxiety 
or  bereavement,  of  dulness  of  faith;  still 
protesting  the  most  real  belief  in  spite  of 
deadness  of  feeling ;  showing  that  true  love 
is  deep  down  in  the  will,  not  merely  on  the 

*  Rom.  V.  3-5. 


74  THE  VIRGIN  MOTHER. 

surface  of  the  emotions.  While  *  *  without 
are  fightings,  and  within  are  fears,"*  the 
Magnificat  is  still  the  utterance  of  the  Chris- 
tian heart,  just  as  every  day — on  Ash 
Wednesday  and  on  Good  Friday  just  as 
much  as  at  Christmas  and  at  Easter — the 
Church  sings  Magnificat  at  Evensong,  in 
different  tones  indeed  and  with  different 
antiphons  and  settings,  but  the  Magnificat 
is  never  to  be  put  out  of  our  life;  in  our 
joys  and  in  our  sorrows  we  are  still  to  look 
up  and  **  magnify  the  Lord,  and  to  rejoice  in 
God  our  Saviour."  To  look  around  may 
cause  dismay,  to  look  up  brings  rest  and 
peace. 

And  when  is  the  Magnificat  sung  ?  Why, 
as  evening  is  drawing  on,  and  the  shadows 
close  in,  and  earthly  joy  and  brightness 
fade  away:  that  is  the  time  to  sing  the 
Magnificat,  and  let  *'joy  in  the  Lord"  be 
the  strength  of  our  lives;  *' hidden  secret- 
ly in  His  tabernacle  from  the  strife  of 
tongues;"  \  like  Paul  and  Silas  at  midnight 
singing    praises  to  the   Lord,  X     and    their 

*  2  Cor.  vii.  5.         t  Ps.  xxxi.  20.        %  Acts  xvi.  25. 


THE  VISITATION.  75 

praises  opened  the  prison  doors.  Ah!  how 
often  that  may  be  true  in  our  lives.  The 
prison-house  seems  fast,  and  difficulties  are 
insurmountable;  but  only  let  us  sing  and 
praise  God,  and  the  doors  are  open  and  a 
way  is  made  for  us  to  escape.  "At  mid- 
night," said  the  Psalmist,  '*I  will  rise  and 
give  thanks  unto  Thee."  *  '*  Rejoice  in  the 
Lord  alway,  and  again  I  say.  Rejoice !  "  f 

i.  Think,  then,  of  Mary's  joy,  and  of  the 
Magnificat  as  giving  the  key  to  the  Christian 
life. 

ii.  Of  her  joy  overflowing  to  others,  giv- 
ing us  the  pattern  of  communicating  and 
sharing  our  gifts  with  others. 

iii.  Of  Mary  singing  the  Magnificat  in  the 
midst  of  anxieties,  teaching  us,  in  whatever 
circumstances  we  find  ourselves,  to  look  up 
and  **  rejoice  in  the  Lord." 

Let  us  say  Psalm  ciii. 

*  Ps.  cxix.  62.  t  PWl-  iv.  4. 


FIFTH  MEDITATION. 

THE     BIRTH     OF     OUR    LORD     JESUS     CHRIST     OF 
HIS   VIRGIN   MOTHER.* 

Let  us    meditate  upon   the  Birth  of  Our 
Lord  Jesus  Christ  of  His  Virgin  Mother, 

Behold  the  stable-cave  of  Bethlehem,  where 
Mary,  when  the  days  were  accomplished, 
brings  forth  her  First-born  Son,  and  wraps 
Him  in  swaddling  clothes,  and  lays  Him  in 
a  manger.  And  listen  to  the  song  of  the 
angels  as  they  throng  around  in  wondering 
adoration,  '*  Glory  to  God  in  the  highest,  and 
on  earth  peace,  good-will  towards  men."  f 

By  the  Mystery  of  Thy  Holy'Incarnation, 

by   Thy  Holy   Nativity,   good  Lord  Jesus,  ' 

deliver  us  from   our  earthliness,  from  the 

lust  of  the  flesh,  from  the  lust  of  the  eye, 

and  from   the  pride   of    life.     Conform   us 

more  and  more  to  Thine  own  Likeness,  as 

*  See  Essay  in  the  Appendix.  f  St.  Luke  ii.  6-14. 

76 


BIRTH  OF  OUR  LORD  JESUS  CHRIST.        77 

Thou  dost  make  us,  by  Thy  gifts  of  grace, 
partakers  of  Thy  Divine  Nature;  that  in 
Thee  we  may  find  acceptance  with  the 
Father,  both  now  and  at  the  last;  with 
Whom,  in  the  Unity  of  the  Holy  Ghost, 
Thou  livest  and  reignest  One  God,  world 
without  end.  Amen. 
Our  Father. 

In  the  old  Service  Books  the  Office  for 
Christmas  Day  contained  a  **  Memorial  of  St. 
Mary  at  the  full  accomplishment  of  the  Mys- 
tery of  the  Incarnation."  And  these  are  the 
words  of  the  Antiphon: — '*  Behold,  all  things 
are  fulfilled  which  were  spoken  by  the  Angel 
concerning  the  Virgin  Mary." 

*  *  The  days  were  accomplished  that  she 
should  be  delivered."  * 

Nine  months  have  passed  since  the  Angel 
came  with  his  wondrous  message;  the 
Eternal  Word  has  been  enshrined  within 
her;  the  Holy  Ghost  has  gradually  fashioned 
of  her  substance  that  Human  Body  with  all 
its  faculties  and  powers,  and  the  Word  has 

*  St.  Luke  ii.6. 


78  THE  VIRGIN  MOTHER. 

been  **made  Flesh."*  The  Creator  has 
assumed  a  created  Nature.  It  is  a  mystery 
before  which  we  can  only  bow  in  adoration ; 
and  yet  this  mystery  is  the  pattern  of  our 
own  spiritual  life;  the  historical  mystery  of 
the  Incarnation  is  to  have  its  counterpart  in 
our  own  spiritual  experience.  And  so  we 
will  meditate  on  the  Birth  of  Our  Lord  Jesus 
Christ  of  his  Virgin  Mother,  and  its  spiritual 
lessons;  we  will  consider  the  truth  of  the  In- 
carnation and  how  it  is  to  be  re-enacted  in  us. 

We  will  see  how  to  build  up  ourselves,  our 
moral  and  spiritual  life,  upon  the  foundation 
of  our  most  holyfaith.f  We  shall  note  the 
value  of  clear,  dogmatic  expression  of  the 
truth,  as  we  carefully  consider  certain  points 
of  doctrine  and  the  lessons  contained  in 
them. 

What  is  the  truth  of  the  Incarnation? 

There  are  four  great  points  we  have  to 
keep  in  mind,  and  each  has  its  spiritual  les- 
son for  our  life. 

i.  He  who  is  born  is  Very  God,  of  One 
Essence  with  the  Father. 

*  St.  John  i.  14.  t  St.  Jude  20. 


BIRTH  OF  OUR  LORD  JESUS  CHRIST.        79 

ii.  He  is  Very  Man,  of  the  substance  of 
the  Virgin  Mary,  His  Mother. 

iii.  These  two  Natures,  the  Divine  and  the 
Human,  are  indissolubly  linked  together  in 
the  Unity  of  His  One  Divine  Person. 

iv.  All  this  is  accomplished  by  the  oper- 
ation of  the  Holy  Ghost.  The  Only-Begotten 
Son  of  God  is  *'  conceived  by  the  Holy  Ghost, 
bom  of  the  Virgin  Mary." 

Let  us  consider  each  of  these  truths,  for  its 
practical  importance. 

I.  He  who  is  horn  is  Very  God,  of  One 
Essence  and  Being  with  His  Father. 

Mary  is  truly  the  God-bearer — Theotokos. 
This  title  was  contended  for  by  the  Church, 
not  so  much  for  her  honour,  as  to  protect 
the  truth  of  the  Incarnation.  She  is  the 
Mother,  according  to  His  Human  Nature, 
of  Him  who  is  God.  Yes  ;  it  is  not  the 
highest  of  created  intelligences  that  is  bom 
of  her;  then  the  gulf  between  creature  and 
Creator  had  not  been  bridged  over;  then 
Heaven  and  earth  had  not  been  really  united. 
No ;  it  is  God  who  shows  Himself  in  our  na- 


8o  THE  VIRGIN  MOTHER. 

ture;  the  Very  and  Eternal  Son  of  God,  **by 
whom  all  things  were  made."  He,  and  none 
other,  **was  made  Flesh  and  dwelt  among 
us,"  and  manifested  a  glory  that  could  be- 
long to  none  other  than  *  *  the  Only  Begotten 
of  the  Father,  full  of  grace  and  truth."  *  He 
gives  us  by  the  Incarnation  a  twofold  rev- 
elation; He  shows  us  what  God  is,  and  what 
man,  made  in  God's  Image,  should  be. 
'*  The  glory  of  God,"  says  St.  Paul,  ''shines 
forth  in  the  face  of  Jesus  Christ."!  We 
know  now  what  God  is  because  we  know 
what  Jesus  was;  and  what  Jesus  was  on 
earth,  that  God  must  ever  be,  in  His  hatred 
for  sin  and  His  love  for  the  sinner;  He  has 
translated  into  language  that  we  can  under- 
stand, the  language  of  human  conduct,  the 
Divine  perfections.  We  know  now  what  the 
Love  of  God  is — it  means  self-sacrifice  and 
compassion;  the  Holiness  of  God — it  means 
readiness  to  suffer  anything  rather  than 
swerve  from  true  obedience.  **  See  in  My 
Life,"  Jesus  Christ  says,  **  See  in  My  Death, 
the  witness,  the  testimony  to  the  Divine  Na- 
*  St.  John  i.  14.  1 2  Cor.  iv.  6. 


BIRTH  OF  OUR  LORD  JESUS  CHRIST.        8i 

ture!"  Yes,  from  Jesus,  and  from  Jesus 
alone,  we  can  learn  with  absolute  certainty 
what  God  is ;  and  we  learn  what  man,  made 
in  God's  Image,  may  be.  Man  was  made  in 
God's  Image  that  he  might  be  conformed  to 
God's  Likeness. 

Just  consider  for  a  moment — it  is  a  pain- 
ful thought,  and  yet  it  is  well  to  face  it — 
consider  the  absolute  impossibility  of  God 
assuming  the  nature  of  any  created  being 
lower  than  man.  He  could  not  have  become 
incarnate  in  any  irrational  being,  for  there 
would  have  been  nothing  for  God  to  fill  up; 
there  would  be  no  correspondence  between 
the  creature  and  the  Creator.  God,  who  is 
Love,  can  only  take  the  nature  of  one  who, 
as  a  moral  being,  is  made  in  His  Image  and 
is  capable  of  reproducing  that  Love.  Man 
can  do  this  because  of  his  natural  capa- 
city for  corresponding  with  the  Divine 
Nature. 

Let  us  learn  from  this  a  true  missionary 
zeal :  to  do  all  that  we  can  both  at  home  and 
in  the  world,  by  prayer  and  by  labour,  to 
win  men  to  their  restoration  to  God's  Image, 


82  THE  VIRGIN  MOTHER. 

to  be  conformed  to  His  Likeness.  *  *  O  God  of 
all  the  nations  of  the  earth,  remember  the 
multitudes  of  the  heathen  who,  though  cre- 
ated in  Thine  Image,  are  perishing  in  their 
ignorance;  and  grant  that  by  the  labours 
and  prayers  of  Thy  Holy  Church,  they  may 
be  delivered  from  all  superstition  and  unbe- 
lief, and  brought  to  worship  Thee  through 
Him  whom  Thou  hast  sent  to  be  our  Sal- 
vation, the  Resurrection  and  the  Life  of 
all  the  faithful.  Thy  Son  Jesus  Christ  our 
Lord."* 

And  what  does  this  mean  for  ourselves? 
We  are  made  partakers  of  the  Divine 
Nature.  We  are  not  partakers  of  a  holy 
man^  but,  as  St.  Peter  says,  "  of  the  Divine 
Nature;  "  f  we  are  made,  really  and  truly, 
*'  children  of  God."  This  is  no  mere  expres- 
sion of  fondness,  but  it  tells  of  actual  rela- 
tionship. Not  that  we  are  made  partakers 
of  His  Infinity,  or  of  His  Eternity,  but 
of  His  Moral  Nature — His  Justice,  His 
Love,  His  Purity,  His  Righteousness. 
These  I  am  to  set  before  me;  nothing  short 
*  St.  Francis  Xavier.  f  2  St.  Peter  i.  4. 


BIRTH  OF  OUR  LORD  JESUS  CHRIST.        83 

of  this;  this  is  the  standard  for  Christian 
life.  So  in  my  daily  life  I  am  to  ask,  *'  How 
would  Christ  have  acted  in  my  circum- 
stances ?  How  would  He  have  me  act  ? 
How  would  Christ  fulfil  my  duties,  do  my 
work,  fill  my  place,  meet  my  difficulties,  turn 
to  account  all  my  capacities  and  opportuni- 
ties ? "  This  is  to  be  the  law  and  inspiration 
of  my  whole  life ;  not  only  of  my  outward 
acts,  but  of  all  my  inward  thoughts  and  de- 
sires. There  is  to  be  a  manifestation  of 
the  Divine  Nature  in  me. 

II.  The  Eternal  Son  of  God,  of  One 
Nature  with  the  Father,  was  made  Very 
Man,  of  the  substance  of  the  Virgin  Mary 
His  Mother.  ''  He  took  not  on  Him  the 
nature  of  Angels,  but  He  took  on  Him  the 
seed  of  Abraham."  *  He  was  really  and 
truly  made  Perfect  Man,  of  His  Mother's 
substance,  having  a  likeness  to  her;  really 
and  truly  deriving  from  her  that  Body  in 
which  He  lived,  in  which  He  died,  in  which 
He  now  reigns;  the  Holy  Spirit  fashioning 
*Heb,  ii.  16. 


84  THE  VIRGIN  MOTHER. 

that  Sacred  Humanity  of  His  Mother's  sub- 
stance. Not  only  was  He  Son  of  Man,  but 
*'  of  the  seed  of  Abraham,"  and  **  of  the  seed 
of  David."  *  He  had  a  real  strain  of  ances- 
try running  down  to  Him. 

(i.)  Consider  how  He  was  made  *'  Perfect 
Man."  Taking,  first,  all  the  different  ele- 
ments of  our  human  nature;  not  merely  a 
Human  Body,  but  a  reasonable  Soul;  a  Mind 
with  memory,  understanding,  and  imagina- 
tion; a  Heart  with  every  true  human  affec- 
tion, of  love,  and  of  hatred  against  evil.  He 
loved  His  Mother,  His  friends  at  Bethany; 
He  loved  His  own  specially  chosen  friend,  St. 
John,  His  bosom  companion,  with  a  particu- 
lar, individualizing  love.f  He  looked  around 
with  anger  and  indignation  at  the  hardness 
of  heart  and  hypocrisy  of  the  Pharisees.  J 
Affections  of  joy  and  sorrow  belonged  to 
that  Human  Heart;  He  rejoiced  with  ex- 
ceeding joy,  and  His  Soul  was  ''exceeding 
sorrowful,    even   unto    death."  §     "For  the 

*  Rom.  i.  3.  t  St.  John  xi.  5;    xiii.  23. 

X  St.  Mark  iii.  5. 

I  St  Luke  X.  21 J  St.  Matt.  xxvi.  38. 


BIRTH  OF  OUR  LORD  JESUS  CHRIST.        85 

joy  that  was  set  before  Him  He  endured  the 
Cross,  despising  the  shame."  *  *'  Who  in  the 
days  of  His  flesh,  offering  up  prayers  and 
supplications  with  strong  crying  and  tears 
unto  Him  that  was  able  to  save  Him  from 
death,  was  heard  for  His  reverence,  "f  Every 
true  human  affection  was  found  in  the 
Sacred  Heart  of  Jesus  Christ,  Very  God  and 
Very  Man. 

And  every  affection  of  ours  is  to  be  sancti- 
fied, not  one  cut  off;  every  one  is  to  be  bap- 
tised, christened,  exercised  in  true  Christian 
energy. 

And  He  had  a  Human^  Will,  so  distinct 
from  the  Divine  Will,  with  which,  neverthe- 
less, it  ever  beat  in  harmony,  that  He  could 
say,  ''Father,  not  My  will,  but  Thine  be 
done."  J 

So  every  element  of  our  nature,  every  fac- 
ulty of  ours,  from  the  lowest  to  the  highest, 
is  to  be  brought  under  the  control  of  relig- 
ion ;  no  one  part  of  it  is  to  be  left  outside ; 
the  body  is  to  be  trained  for  God's  service, 
the  mind  disciplined  and  brought  under  the 

*  Heb.  xii.  2.         t  Heb.  v.  7.  %  St.  Luke  xxii.  42. 


86  THE  VIRGIN  MOTHER. 

yoke  of  Christ,  the  affections  chastened,  the 
will  is  to  be  at  once  strengthened  and  con- 
trolled. All  the  different  parts  of  our  life — 
home-life,  social-life,  our  work  and  our 
prayer — all  the  subject-matter  of  life  is  to  be 
penetrated  with  religion.  Is  this  so,  in  all 
the  details  of  my  life  ?  Or  am  I  leaving 
religion  for  Sunday,  and  letting  domestic 
matters  remain  outside  its  influence  ?  Am  I 
careless  in  my  accounts,  unpunctual  in  my 
duties,  untidy  in  little  matters  ?  With  a 
Christian  we  might  almost  say  the  difference 
between  **  secular"  and  ''religious"  is 
abolished.  **  The  Word,"  than  which 
naught  is  higher,  *'is  made  flesh,"  than 
which  naught  is  lower,  so  that  **  whether  we 
eat  or  drink,  or  whatsoever  we  do  "  we  can 
**do  all  to  the  glory  of  God,"  because  we 
can  do  all  in  the  Name  and  after  the  ex- 
ample of  Jesus  Christ,  the  Incarnate  Son  of 
God.* 

Think,  then,  of  this  law  of  sanctification 
for  the  whole  of  human  nature  and  the  whole 
of  human  life. 

*x  Cor.  X.  31 ;  Col.  iii.  17. 


BIRTH  OF  OUR  LORD  JESUS  CHRIST.        87 

(2.)  Again;  the  Son  of  God  was  made 
Very  Man,  Perfect  Man ;  not  only  assuming 
our  nature  in  its  integrity,  but  taking  it  and 
using  it  according  to  the  laws  of  human 
nature,  and  so,  subject  to  its  limitations. 
The  finite  is  not  made  infinite  because  the 
Infinite  Person  used  it.  There  were  restric- 
tions in  His  Life  as  Man.  In  His  human 
nature  He  could  die;  He  needed  food  and 
rest;  He  was  subject  to  fatigue.  Why 
should  people  find  a  difficulty  in  accepting 
any  limitations  to  our  Lord's  Human  knowl- 
edge ?  He,  the  Eternal  Word,  knew  all 
things ;  but  why  should  we  shrink  from  the 
thought  that,  as  the  Almighty  Power  of  the 
Eternal  Word  was  restrained  so  that  it  did 
not  at  all  times  overflow  His  Body,  and 
miracles  were  not  the  ordinary  law  of  His 
Life,  but  were  reserved  for  great  moral  occa- 
sions ;  so  it  was  with  the  Infinite  Wisdom  oi 
the  Eternal  Word;  it  was  restrained  from 
overflowing  the  Human  Mind?  For  the 
purposes  of  His  mission  His  Mind  was  Di- 
vinely illuminated.  Christ  came  to  teach 
the  truths  it  concerned  man  to  know;  about 


88  THE  VIRGIN  MOTHER. 

God — His  Being  and  Character;  about  man — 
his  origin  and  destiny,  the  true  standard  of 
his  life,  his  relation  to  God  and  means  of 
approaching  Him;  all  this  it  was  necessary 
for  us  to  know.  But  Christ  did  not  come  to 
teach  all  those  subjects  that  are  on  the  bor- 
der-land, so  to  speak,  of  religion — ^historical, 
scientific  matters,  and  so  on.  His  mission 
was  to  teach  religion^  and  for  that  purpose 
He  inspired  His  Human  Soul. 

So  think  how,  in  our  individual  life,  we 
are  to  accept  the  limitations  that  Almighty 
God  has  imposed  upon  each  of  us.  It  is  an 
accepted  fact  that  all  cannot  do  the  same 
thing ;  all  have  not  the  same  powers,  mental 
or  bodily.  We  are  responsible  for  using  the 
gifts  that  He  has  given  us.  Christ  is  to  be 
manifested  in  our  nature,  in  our  gifts,  in  our 
limited  sphere  and  capacities,  whatever  these 
may  be.  There  is  one  limitation  we  must 
all  accept.  We  are  not  presumptuously  to 
overtax  our  strength,  or  to  disregard  our 
health,  or  the  dangers  which  may  come  from 
overstraining  mind  or  body,  heart  or  spirit. 

Again.      He  became   Very  Man,    Perfect 


BIRTH  OF  OUR  LORD  JESUS  CHRIST.        89 

Man,  passsing  through  all  the  stages  of  hu- 
man life  and  development.  He  was  subject 
to  the  law  of  growth;  His  body  grew  in 
stature,  His  mind  likewise  advanced  in  wis- 
dom— St.  Luke  says  so,  and  more — that  He 
not  only  "increased  in  wisdom  and  stature," 
but  also  '4n  favour  with  God  and  man."* 
There  was  a  moral  and  a  spiritual  develop- 
ment in  the  Humanity  of  the  Eternal  Son. 
Does  this  startle  anyone?  Is  it  inconsistent 
with  His  being  Very  God?  Why?  Everyone 
will  at  once  acknowledge  the  difference  be- 
tween the  perfection  of  innocence — the  blame- 
lessness  of  childhood — and  the  perfection  of 
ripened  manhood  when  temptation  has  been 
met  and  overcome.  There  is  a  peculiar  and 
attractive  sweetness  and  grace  attaching  to 
the  innocence  of  a  little  child;  and  yet,  if 
that  life  be  cut  off  in  childhood,  we  feel  that 
something  is  lost ;  that  innocence  might  have 
developed  into  mature  development;  there 
has  been  no  budding  forth  of  all  those  gifts 
and  graces  that  existed  in  germ. 
Just  so  was  it  with  Jesus  Christ.  His  Hu- 
*  St.  Luke  ii.  52. 


90  THE  VIRGIN  MOTHER. 

manity  was  flawless  from  the  first ;  from  the 
cradle  it  was  perfect  according  to  God's 
original  design;  all  was  in  perfect  cor- 
respondence with  the  Divine  Will,  every  im- 
pulse of  that  nature  was  holy;  yet  Holy 
Scripture  tells  us  that  "He  learned  obedi- 
ence by  the  things  which  He  suffered."  *  He 
was  perfected  through  suffering;  He  mani- 
fested an  experimental  perfection;  He  met 
temptation  and  overcame  it,  and  so  devel- 
oped the  contrary  virtues.  That  Human 
Nature  was  more  and  more  made  the  Instru- 
ment of  the  Divine  Will,  in  obedience  to 
which  He  increasingly  manifested  fresh 
graces  and  virtues,  as  ' '  through  the  Eternal 
Spirit   He  offered  Himself  without  spot  to 

God."t 

Just  so  is  it  to  be  with  our  life;  we 
must  be  content  to  grow  to  perfection; 
we  must  be  humble  and' we  must  be  patient; 
we  can't  become  saints  all  at  once ;  we  can't 
fly  from  earth  to  heaven;  no,  we  have  to 
climb  rung  after  rung  of  the  ladder,  passing 
from  stage  to  stage;  we  must  be  content  to 
*  Heb.  V.  8.  t  Heb.  ix.  14, 


BIRTH  OF  OUR  LORD  JESUS  CHRIST.        91 

be  first  **  babes  in  Christ,"  fed  with  milk  and 
then  with  solid  meat.*  How  often  we  ignore 
this  law  with  ourselves  and  with  others  ! 
How  impatient  we  are  with  those  committed 
to  our  care  in  matters  of  secular  learning! 
or  in  matters  spiritual,  in  dogmatic  teaching; 
perhaps  we  ourselves  have  just  grasped  some 
point,  and  now  we  cannot  think  how  others 
can  be  so  stupid,  so  blind,  as  not  to  see 
what  is  clear  to  us!  We  are  not  content 
that  others  should  grow.  We  need  patience 
with  ourselves  and  with  others;  we  are 
apt  to  want  to  be  great  saints,  or  nothing  at 
all! 

Ah!  Jesus  gives  us  the  lesson: — *' First 
the  blade,  then  the  ear;  after  that  the  full 
corn  in  the  ear."  f 

See  how  this  is  represented  to  us  in  the 
Sacraments.  Baptism  is  styled  by  our  Lord, 
**the  New  Birth, "J  i.e,  it  is  the  planting 
of  the  germ  of  spiritual  life,  which  is  to  be 
carefully  guarded,  watchfully  cherished,  and 
by  degrees  developed. 

*  I  Cor.  iii.  2 ;  Heb.  v.  13,  14.        f  St.  Mark  iv.  28. 
X  St.  John  iii.  3. 


92  THE  VIRGIN  MOTHER. 

Again,  the  Sacrament  of  Christ's  Body  and 
Blood  is  our  spiritual  food.  Food  is  to  be 
assimilated,  and  by  it  we  gradually  gain 
strength.  We  sometimes  hear  it  said  that 
**one  Communion  is  enough  to  make  a 
saint !  "  Well,  if  one  Communion  is  enough, 
one  Communion  was  not  intended  to  make  a 
saint.  If  God  had  so  intended,  the  Blessed 
Sacrament  would  not  have  been  given  us  as 
**food,"  and  under  the  outward  form  of  the 
ordinary  daily  food  of  the  people  of  the  land 
— bread  and  wine.  It  is  the  '*  Bread  of 
Life,"*  Jesus  says;  and  by  receiving  Com- 
munion after  Communion  our  spiritual  life 
is  to  be  nourished,  strengthened  and  devel- 
oped; our  sinful  bodies  being  made  clean  by 
contact  with,  by  being  interpenetrated  by, 
His  own  Sinless  Body;  and  our  sin-stained 
souls  more  and  more  washed  in  His  most 
Precious  Blood;  He,  more  and  more,  by  His 
grace  dwelling  in  us;  and  we,  more  and 
more,  by  faith,  by  obedience,  by  love,  dwell- 
ing in  Him. 

So  the  lesson  we  learn  from  this  thought 
*  St.  John  vi.  ;^s. 


BIRTH  OF  OUR  LORD  JESUS  CHRIST.        93 

is  Patience — patience  with  ourselves  and  with 
others;  and  Humility.  This  we  may  well 
learn  from  the  consideration  of  our  Lord  in 
His  Sacred  Humanity  gradually  growing  up 
to  perfection. 

III.  Let  us  consider,  shortly,  how  the  Two 
Natures,  the  Human  and  the  Divine,  are 
joined  together  in  One  Person.  ''  Not  by  con- 
fusion of  Substance,  but  by  Unity  of  Per- 
son," as  the  Athanasian  Creed  says. 

Yes,  so  is  it,  remember,  in  the  Blessed 
Sacrament.  Note  the  analogy  between  the 
Incarnation  and  the  Holy  Eucharist.  It  is 
a  common  devotional  expression  to  speak  of 
**the  miracle  of  the  Blessed  Sacrament.  It 
is,  really  and  truly,  no  miracle  at  all.  It  is  a 
mystery.  A  miracle  involves  the  suspension 
of  the  ordinary  laws  of  nature  by  the  inter- 
vention of  some  higher  law.  But  this  is  not 
the  case  with  the  Blessed  Sacrament.  If  the 
Bread  and  Wine,  according  to  the  common, 
vulgar  idea  of  Transubstantiation,  ceased  to 
be,  were  changed  into  the  Body  and  Blood 
of  Christ,  if  one  natural  substance  took  the 


94  THE  VIRGIN  MOTHER. 

place  of  another  natural  substance,  this  would 
be  a  miracle;  as  at  Cana,  when  the  water 
was  made  wine;  or,  supposing  our  Lord  in 
the  wilderness  had  done  as  Satan  suggested, 
and  changed  the  stones  into  bread;  this 
would  have  been  a  miracle.  There  is  noth- 
ing of  this  in  the  Holy  Eucharist.  The 
Bread  and  Wine  remain  exactly  what  they 
were  before;  their  taste,  touch  and  smell  are 
the  same,  and  they  are  liable  to  decay.  For 
purposes  of  nature,  for  the  nourishment  of 
our  lower  life,  they  remain  precisely  what 
they  were  before.  But  by  consecration  by 
the  Word  and  Spirit  of  God  they  are  made 
vehicles  for  enshrining  and  communicating 
another  and  a  higher  Substance,  i.e.  the 
Body  and  Blood  of  Christ,  to  be  the  nourish- 
ment of  our  spiritual  life.  * '  The  bread  that 
we  break,  is  it  not  the  communion  of  the 
Body  of  Christ  ?  The  cup  which  we  bless, 
is  it  not  the  communion  of  the  Blood  of 
Christ  ?  "  *  It  is  the  consecration  and  taking 
up  of  earthly  elements  to  serve  a  heavenly 
and  spiritual  purpose. 

*  I  Cor.  X.  i6. 


BIRTH  OF  OUR  LORD  JESUS  CHRIST.       95 

And  just  so  is  it  in  the  Incarnation. 
There  is  no  miracle,  but  a  great  mystery  in 
the  Union  of  the  Divine  and  Human  Natures 
in  One  Person.  God  is  not  changed  into 
man,  and  the  Manhood  is  not  made  Divine ; 
but  Human  Nature,,  in  its  perfection,  is 
taken  up  into  the  Divine  in  the  Person  of 
Christ,  without  any  change  or  impairing  of 
His  original  dignity.  And  He  acted  in  that 
Human  Nature  in  strict  conformity  with  its 
laws.  The  only  miracle  about  the  Incarna- 
tion was  in  the  Virgin  Birth — in  the  man- 
ner of  His  entrance  into  the  world.* 

And  just  so  it  is  in  our  own  spiritual  life. 
**  I  am  crucified  with  Christ;  nevertheless  I 
live,  yet  not  I,  but  Christ  liveth  in  me." 
The  communication  of  grace  does  not  take 
the  place  of  my  personality,  it  does  not  ex- 
tinguish my  human  life ;  but  it  is  given  to  me 
to  enable  me  to  live  more  truly — a  true  human 
life ;  to  live  indeed  under  restraint,  the  * '  old 
man  is  crucified; "  but  I  am  not  destroyed  by 
that  crucifixion  of  my  old  nature;  **never- 

*  See  Bible  Teachings  (on  St.  John  vi.)  by  the  Rev.  R.  M. 
Benson,  ch.  xxiii. 


96  THE  VIRGIN  MOTHER. 

theless,  I  live  "  more  truly,  more  fully,  more 
freely,  '*yet  not  I"  according  to  my  own 
natural  impulses  and  desires,  **but  Christ 
liveth  in  me,"  the  real  motive  and  power  of 
my  life,  **  and  the  life  which  I  now  live  in 
the  flesh  I  live  by  faith  in  the  Son  of  God, 
who  loved  me  and  gave  Himself  for  me."  * 

IV.  One  point  more.  The  Union  af  the 
Divine  a?id  Human  Natures  in  the  Person  of 
the  Eternal  Word  is  effected  by  the  Spirit's 
Power.  Christ  was  **  conceived  by  the  Holy 
Ghost,  born  of  the  Virgin  Mary."  Mary  was 
His  sole  earthly  parent ;  and  so  the  entail  of 
original  sin  is  cut  off. 

Here  we  have  the  one  difference  between 
our  Lord's  Human  Nature  and  our  own. 
In  Him  there  was  simply  the  development  of 
holiness,  the  going  ' '  from  strength  to 
strength,"  from  one  virtue  to  another; 
there  were  no  rebellious  elements  to  re- 
strain, no  wrongful  tendencies  to  overcome. 
In  us  *'the  flesh  lusteth  against  the  spirit, 
and  the  spirit  against  the  flesh,  "f  With  us 
*  Gal.ii.  20;  Rom.  vi.  6.  f  Gal.  v.  17. 


BIRTH  OF  OUR  LORD  JESUS  CHRIST.        97 

there  must  be  not  only  the  formation  of  good 
habits,  but  the  undoing  of  evil  ones;  the 
**  putting  off"  more  and  more,  of  '*the  old 
man,"  the  *' putting  on,"  more  and  more,  of 
''the  new."*  So  we  have  this  additional 
reason  for  cultivating  humility  and  patience. 

Ah !  life  is  so  difficult,  so  hard,  because  we 
have  to  bear  the  consequences  of  past  sins. 
It  is  so  hard  to  keep  from  wandering 
thoughts  in  prayer,  because  I  have  let  my 
imagination  have  its  own  way.  I  have 
allowed  this  or  that  evil  thought,  contrary 
to  love,  or  to  purity,  or  to  humility,  to  get 
possession  of  my  heart,  and  now  it|  claims  its 
place  there ;  it  has  to  be  put  out  by  force.  I 
have  to  unravel  the  tangle  of  my  past  life,  as 
well  as  to  weave  habits  of  holiness. 

**  Conceived  by  the  Holy  Ghost,  born  of 
the  Virgin  Mary."  Yes;  it  is  not  by  human 
or  by  natural  means  that  the  birth  of  the  Son 
of  God  in  our  nature  is  effected,  either  in 
the  historical  Incarnation,  or  in  its  spiritual 
re-enactment  in  our  own  experience.  **As 
many  as  received  Him,  to  them  gave  He 
*  Col.  ill.  9,  10. 


98  THE  VIRGIN  MOTHER. 

power  to  become  the  sons  of  God,  who 
are  born,  not  of  blood,  nor  of  the  will  of  the 
flesh,  nor  of  the  will  of  man,  but  of  God."* 
There  is  the  counterpart  in  our  spiritual 
experience  of  the  miraculous  conception  of 
Him  who  was  "born  of  the  Virgin  Mary." 
**  Not  by  might,  nor  by  power,  but  by  My 
Spirit,"  saith  the  Lord  of  Hosts. "f  The 
Angel  came  with  the  message,  and  Joseph 
had  to  guard  both  the  Mother  and  the  Child; 
but  neither  Gabriel  nor  Joseph  had  aught  to 
do  with  the  formation  of  the  Child;  that 
was  by  the  Spirit's  power.]; 

And  so^e  minister  of  God  may  come  to 
us  with  the  word  of  vocation,  or  some  friend 
may  be  the  guide  of  our  spiritual  life,  but 
the  Spirit  of  God  alone  can  produce  the  life 
within.  Remember  it  in  your  life,  in  the 
regard  of  all  earthly  instrumentality;  the 
priest  may  be  the  holiest,  the  guide  the 
wisest,  the  friend  the  dearest;  they  may 
help,  but  the  utmost  they  can  do  is  what 
Gabriel  and  Joseph  did  for  Mary ;  the  Spirit 
must  communicate  life. 

*  St  John  i.  12,  13.       t  Zech.  iv.  6.       J  St.  Luke  h  35. 


BIRTH  OF  OUR  LORD  JESUS  CHRIST.        99 

And  as  in  your  life,  so  in  your  work; 
you  can  but  do  what  Gabriel  did  and  Joseph ; 
you  cannot  create  spiritual  life  in  others  ; 
you  can  guard  it,  you  can  bring  this  and 
that  one  under  the  influence  of  the  Spirit 
of  God;  you  can  do  as  the  bystanders  did 
at  the  grave  of  Lazarus;  you  can  remove 
the  stone  out  of  the  way,  in  order  that  Jesus 
Christ  may  have  the  chance,  so  to  speak,  of 
getting  at  that  soul.  But  He  is  the  Res- 
urrection of  those  who  are  spiritually  dead 
as  well  as  the  Life  of  those  who  live.* 

Don't  try  to  impress  yourselves  too  much 
on  others;  it  is  too  much  the  tendency  of 
human  friendship.  Do  not  try  to  play  the 
part  of  human  father  to  Jesus  Christ  in  the 
soul;  learn  to  stand  by,  and  let  the  Spirit 
do  His  work.  We  are  not  so  much  to  go  be- 
fore the  human  soul  as  to  follow  after  it. 
We  are  not  to  seek  to  mould  others  accord- 
ing to  our  own  pattern,  but  to  render 
them  mobile  and  plastic  to  the  Spirit's 
dealing;  encourage  them  to  follow  Christ, 
to  be  obedient  and  docile  to  His  Word;  that 
*St.  John  xi.  39,  25,  26, 


loo  THE  VIRGIN  MOTHER. 

His  likeness  may  be  reproduced  in  them,  as 
in  us,  by  the  operation  of  the  Holy  Spirit  of 
God. 

Think,  then,  of  this  Mystery  of  the  Incar- 
nation : 

i.  That  we  are  made  partakers  of  the 
Divine  Nature. 

ii.  That  the  Divine  Life  is  to  be  mani- 
fested in  our  life  and  in  our  circumstances. 

iii.  And  that  all  this  is  to  be  by  the 
Spirit's  power. 

**0h!"  you  say,  **this  is  something  too 
high  for  me  to  rise  to ! "  Remember  Mary 
shrank  and  shuddered  at  the  message;  but 
the  Angel  said,  *' Fear  not,  Mary,"  for  "the 
Holy  Ghost  shall  come  upon  thee,  and  the 
power  of  the  Highest  shall  overshadow 
thee." 

Let  us  say  Psalm  ci. 


SIXTH  MEDITATION. 

THE   PURIFICATION    OF    THE    VIRGIN    MOTHER. 

Let    us    meditate    upon   the  Purification  of 
the  Blessed  Virgin  Mary, 

Contemplate  the  Mother,  standing  in  the 
Temple  Court,  holding  her  Child  in  her 
arms,  waiting  to  offer  Him  to  the  Lord,  and 
to  present  the  offering  for  her  purification. 

O  Almighty  God,  most  Holy  and  most 
Merciful,  purge  us,  we  pray  Thee,  from  all 
defilement  of  flesh  and  spirit,  that  we  may 
worthily  draw  nigh  to  Thee  in  prayer  and  all 
the  means  of  grace,  and  be  more  and  more 
purged  from  evil;  that  so,  as  living  mem- 
bers of  the  mystical  Body  of  Thy  dear  Son, 
we  may  find  acceptance  with  Thee  now  and 
at  the  last,  for  His  sake  in  Whose  Name  we 
pray. 

Our  Father. 

We  have    come  to   the   consideration  of 


I02  THE  VIRGIN  MOTHER. 

another  Mystery  of  Joy,  the  last  of  the 
Joyful  Mysteries;  with  a  note  of  warning 
and  prediction  of  coming  woe  in  the  words 
of  Simeon — *'a  sword  shall  pierce  through 
thy  own  soul  also."* 

It  was  a  great  day  for  Blessed  Mary  when 
she  took  her  Child,  God's  own  Son  in  our 
nature,  to  present  Him,  the  offspring  of  her 
womb,  to  His  Heavenly  Father  in  the 
Temple;  and  when  she  too  herself  for  the 
first  time  after  His  Birth  and  the  accom- 
plishment of  the  Angel's  message,  entered 
the  courts  of  the  Temple.  We  may  be  sure 
she  sang  her  Magnificat  over  again,  as  her 
solemn  thanksgiving  for  the  great  things 
God  had  done  for  her  and  in  her. 

I.  Let  us  think  of  her  now  in  the  Purifi- 
cation, as  giving  us  an  example  of  diligence 
and  perseverance  in  God's  worships  and  in 
the  use  of  the  means  of  grace. 

The  Law  of  Purification  and  Presentation 
did  not  strictly  apply  to  her  case  and  that 
of  her  Child.     There  was  no  need  of  purifi- 

*  St.  Luke  ii.  35. 


THE  PURIFICATION.  103 

cation  in  that  Child-bearing;  she  had  con- 
tracted no  stain;  in  that  Birth  there  was 
nothing  in  the  least  degree  contrary  to  per- 
fect purity,  for  He  was  "conceived  by  the 
Holy  Ghost,  born  of  the  Virgin  Mary." 
Nor  was  there  any  need  of  redemption  in 
His  case ;  He  was  indeed  Himself  the  Priest 
and  Victim,  the  First-bom  Son  Who,  by  the 
sacrifice  of  Himself,  was  to  redeem  all. 
Neither  was  there  any  need  in  His  case  of 
the  Circumcision — the  rite  that  was  a  badge 
of  sin,  and  told  of  the  need  of  mortifying 
unruly  desires.  In  Him  there  was  nothing 
that  swerved  from  perfect  correspondence 
with  God's  design.  But  no  dispensation  had 
been  given,  so  no  exemption  was  claimed. 

So  it  was  with  our  Lord  at  His  Baptism. 
He  came  to  Jordan  with  the  rest  to  receive 
that  which  was  a  sign  of  the  washing  away  of 
sin,  in  order  that  He  might  **  fulfil  all  right- 
eousness,"* not  Himself  to  receive  cleans- 
ing, but  to  sanctify  water  to  the  mystical 
washing  away  of  our  sin.  We  have  a  simi- 
lar example  of  this  diligence  in  using  the 

*  St.  Matt  iii.  15. 


104  THE  VIRGIN  MOTHER. 

means  of  grace  in  Mary's  yearly  visit  to  the 
Temple.  It  was  not  of  obligation  on  the 
woman's  part,  as  it  was  with  men ;  but  she 
did  not  excuse  herself,  or  urge  the  plea 
that  it  was  difficult  to  leave  her  Child  at 
home  with  the  rough  crowd  at  Nazareth,  or 
that  there  was  no  need  for  her  to  go  up  to 
the  Temple  where  the  services  were  so  per- 
functorily performed;  she  was  better  em- 
ployed at  home  with  her  Child !  Ah !  what 
plausible  reasons  might  have  been  urged! 
but  none  were  used.  His  parents  went 
yearly  to  the  feast.*  Blessed  Mary  gives  us 
an  example  of  diligence,  of  faithfulness  and 
earnestness  in  seeking  God  in  all  appointed 
means  of  grace. 

Then  let  us  examine  our  regularity  in  the 
use  of  the  means  of  grace — times  of  prayer, 
sacraments,  fasting-days,  rules  of  self- 
denial,  and  so  on.  And  not  only  our  dili- 
gence, but  our  earnestness  in  our  use  of 
them ;  coming  to  the  Sacraments  with  right 
dispositions,  with  a  real  spiritual  appetite, 
with    **  hunger  and  thirst  after   righteous- 

*St.  Lukeii.  41. 


THE  PURIFICATION.  10$ 

ness."*  Do  we  seek  to  excuse  ourselves, 
asking,  '*Need  I?"  *'Must  I?"  This 
surely  is  not  a  Christian  question.  A  bet- 
ter would  be,  ^^ May  I?"  *'Is  there  any 
means  by  which  I  may  serve  f^God  better, 
by  which  I  may  express  more  truly  my 
loving  sorrow  for  past  sin  ? "  We  are  not 
to  serve  in  the  spirit  of  bondage,  but  as 
loving  children  in  the  spirit  of  adoption,  f 
Let  us  set  before  us  Blessed  Mary  as  an 
example  of  diligence  and  earnestness  in 
approaching  God,  in  the  use  of  all  the  means 
of  grace. 

II.  Consider  the  reward  of  this  diligence 
and  faithfulness,  of  which  we  have  the 
pledge  and  example  in  the  Purification. 
**  Unknown"  she  is,  "yet  well-known."  { 
She  goes  up  to  the  Temple  like  any  other 
mother,  but  she  is  recognized  by  Simeon 
and  Anna,  and  she  receives  a  further  con- 
firmation of  her  faith  in  their  recognition. 
And  they  too  had  been  purified  by  long 
discipline  and  waiting,  and  now  their  faith- 

*  St.  Matt.  V.  6.  t  Rom.  iii.  15.  J  2  Cor.  vi.  9. 


lo6  THE  VIRGIN  MOTHER. 

fulness  is  rewarded  by  the  vision  vouchsafed 
to  them.  They  had  waited  long  years,  look- 
ing for  redemption  in  Jerusalem,  and  Sim- 
eon had  received  the  promise  that  he  should 
not  pass  away  till  all  was  fulfilled,  until  he 
had  seen  the  Lord's  Christ.  There  was  so 
much  that  was  perfunctory  in  the  Temple 
rites;  still  they  persevered,  and  lifted  up 
their  hearts  to  God.  And  in  the  end  they 
are  rewarded;  Mary  comes  to  the  Temple, 
and  their  spiritual  vision  is  illumined. 
Simeon  sees  that  Mother,  and  in  her  Child 
he  recognizes  the  Lord's  Christ,  come  to 
redeem  the  world.  It  is  the  pure — the  meek 
— who  *'see  God."*  He  takes  Him  up  in 
his  arms  and  sings  his  Nunc  Dimittis^  and 
blesses  the  parents.  Ah !  see  the  reward  of 
patient  waiting  on  God. 

Sometimes  some  of  you  are  tempted  to 
give  up  attendance  at  Church,  or  at  the 
Sacraments,  because  the  ministration  is  so 
irreverent,  or  because  so  much  is  lacking. 
*'It  is  so  little  to  my  taste,  I  had  better 
absent  myself  altogether."  No;  if  others 
*  St.  Matt.  V.  3. 


THE  PURIFICATION.  107 

are  cold,  go  and  be  a  centre  of  devotion 
yourself;  if  others  absent  themselves,  be  the 
more  regular  and  earnest  yourself;  look 
through  the  unworthiness  of  the  minister  to 
Him  Who  is  the  Great  High-Priest,  Who 
stands  in  the  midst  of  the  seven  golden 
candlesticks  that  symbolized  the  Universal 
Church,  Who  holds  in  His  Hand  the  seven 
stars  that  represent  the  Priesthood  of  the 
Church.*  Look  to  Him  for  the  reward  of 
your  faithful  attendance,  your  devout  wor- 
ship. "  In  every  place  "  and  rite  "where  I 
record  My  Name,  I  will  come  unto  you  and 
bless  you."t  And  so  in  your  own  private 
devotions.  It  may  be  your  prayers  are  dull 
and  dead;  your  meditation  is  irksome — a 
waste  of  time,  it  seems ;  you  have  no  light. 
Ah,  but  Simeon  and  Anna  had  waited  a 
long,  long  time  before  the  Vision  came  at 
last  and  repaid  all  their  waiting ;  so  * '  though 
the  vision  tarry,  wait  for  it ;  because  it  will 
surely  come,  it  will  not  tarry. "J  God  keeps 
us  waiting  for  the  answer  to  our  prayer 
(not  only  for  external  benefits,  but  for  spir- 
*  Rev.  i.  13,  16,  20.        t  Ex.  XX.  24.        |  Hab.  ii.  3. 


io8  THE  VIRGIN  MOTHER. 

itual  graces  also),  not  because  He  is  grudg- 
ing in  His  gifts,  but  because  He  would 
develop  in  us  a  greater  capacity  to  receive. 

So  learn  the  lesson  of  faithful,  patient, 
persevering  diligence;  and  see  the  reward 
that  in  the  end  comes. 

III.  Consider  the  reason  of  the  delay  on 
Blessed  Mary's  part  in  going  up  to  the 
Temple, 

It  was  not  until  forty  days  were  past,  six 
weeks  since  the  Birth  of  her  Child,  that 
she  visits  the  Temple.  Why  not  before  ? 
Bethlehem  was  but  a  little  way  from  the 
Holy  City. 

She  waited  **  until  the  days  of  her  Purifi- 
cation were  accomplishd."  O  how  she 
longed  meanwhile  to  go  into  the  courts  of 
the  Lord  !  **  O  how  amiable  are  Thy  dwell- 
ings. Thou  Lord  of  Hosts!  My  soul  hath  a 
desire  and  longing  to  enter  into  the  courts 
of  the  Lord  ;  my  heart  and  my  flesh  rejoice 
in  the  living  God  !  "  *  Have  we  such  long- 
ings ? — not  merely  to  enter  into  the  earthly 

*  Ps.  Ixxxiv.  I,  2. 


THE  PURIFICATION.  109 

sanctuary,  but  for  some  nearer  approach  to 
God  in  the  spiritual  life;  to  be  able  to  speak 
more  freely  to  Him  in  prayer;  to  hear  His 
Word  more  clearly  speaking  in  our  con- 
science; to  have  our  faith  more  clear  and 
strong — those  mists  of  doubt  and  temptation 
rolled  away;  to  be  free  from  that  clinging 
temptation  which  is  haunting  us  and  dogging 
our  path  ?  Ah  !  but  wait  patiently  * '  until 
the  days  of  purification  are  accomplished," 
until  the  days  of  discipline  are  over ;  until  a 
greater  clearness  of  conscience  and  purity  of 
heart  may  enable  us  to  hear  His  Voice 
speaking  to  us. 

Think  of  Mary's  obedience  to  the  Law 
concerning  Purification,  as  laid  down  in  Lev. 
xii,,  which  subjected  the  mother  after  child- 
bearing  to  a  ceremonial  cleansing  from  her 
defilement.  All  these  provisions  of  the  cere- 
monial Law  are  [full  of  spiritual  significance. 
They  were  intended  as  object  lessons  before 
the  eyes  of  the  people  witnessing  to  the  holi- 
ness of  God  and  the  need  of  holiness  in  ap- 
proaching Him.  Just  as  contact  with  a 
leper  or  with  death  communicated  ritual  de- 


THE  VIRGIN  MOTHER. 


filement  and  needed  ceremonial  purification, 
so  was  it  with  the  handing  on  of  life.  It 
was  the  handing  on  of  a  tainted,  marred 
nature ;  not  as  God  originally  made  it,  but  fal- 
len and  disordered.  Therefore  it  involved  de- 
filement, and  cleansing  was  required.  The 
rites  for  purification  after  childbirth  wit- 
nessed to  original  sin.  Ah  !  we  have  need 
to  remember  that  quite  as  much  for  our  en- 
couragement as  for  warning.  We  are  not 
unf alien  creatures  in  an  unf alien  world ;  it  is 
not  safe  for  us  to  use  all  the  pleasures  that 
are  in  themselves  innocent.  We  have  a  nat- 
ural tendency  to  sink  down  to  earthly  things ; 
and  the  world,  in  its  fallen  condition,  has  a 
tendency  to  drag  us  down  in  our  fallen  con- 
dition ;  to  act  as  a  screen — shutting  God  out 
from  our  sight.  There  is  therefore  need  of 
self -discipline,  of  self-denial  in  this  and  that 
particular,  of  keeping  under  the  body,  of 
losing  the  lower  to  gain  the  higher 
life. 

And  think  what  a  lesson  of  comfort  there 
is  here!  God  knows  all  that;  He  knows  the 
condition  of  our  fallen  nature,  and  He  takes 


THE  PURIFICATION.  Ill 

all  into  account.  He  knows  its  drift,  how 
easily  we  go  astray;  how  the  flesh  is  weak 
even  when  the  spirit  is  willing.  We  must 
come  before  Him  in  humble,  penitent  ac- 
knowledgment of  our  fallen  estate,  con- 
fessing and  bewailing  not  only  our  sin  but 
our  sinfuhiess.  *  *  In  sin  hath  my  mother 
conceived  me;"  therefore,  **make  me  a  clean 
heart,  O  God,  and  renew  a  right  spirit  within 
me."* 

Scripture  expresses  our  experience.  The 
lower  nature  wars  against  the  higher;  **  the 
flesh  lusteth  against  the  spirit  and  the  spirit 
against  the  flesh,  so  that  ye  cannot  do  the 
things  that  ye  would."  f  **The  good  that  I 
would,  I  do  not;  but  the  evil  which  I  would 
not,  that  I  do."  *'I  see  another  law  in  my 
members,  warring  against  the  law  of  my 
mind,  and  bringing  me  into  captivity  to  the 
law  of  sin  which  is^in  my  members."  J 

I  am  sure  that  the  distinction  between 
** sin "  and  "sinfulness "  is  a  very  important 
and  a  very  helpful  one.  So  often  a  day 
passes,  and  we  come  to  our  self-examination 

*  Ps.  li.  5,  lo.         t  Gal.  V.  17.  X  Rom.  vii.  19, 23. 


112  THE  VIRGIN  MOTHER. 

at  night,  and  we  are  not  conscious  of  having 
committed  any  sin  during  the  day.  Then 
people  get  terribly  frightened,  and  they 
think,  **  Dear  me,  what  a  state  I  must  be  in, 
to  think  I  can  have  passed  a  day  and  not  be 
able  to  find  a  sin !  "  But  let  us  not  disparage 
the  work  of  the  Holy  Ghost.  What  is  the 
use  of  the  grace  of  God,  if  it  is  not  to  keep 
us  from  sin  ?  What  is  Holy  Communion 
ior,  but  to  keep  us  clean  from  sin  ?  There 
ought  to  be  many  days  on  which  we 
commit  no  definite  sin  of  thought,  or 
word,  or  deed.  Perhaps  we  have  had 
no  special  temptation.  Or  perhaps  grace 
has  been  extremely  powerful:  you  have 
felt  it  playing  about  you,  you  have 
been  conscious  of  a  higher  power  within. 
But  notwithstanding  this,  we  know  that  all 
has  not  been  quite  right  within;  there  are 
the  workings  of  evil  there — of  meanness,  of 
jealousy,  of  self-indulgence;  they  have  not 
come  to  a  head,  they  have  not  been  brought 
to  a  point,  but  they  are  there.  **  Though  I 
tave  not  sinned,  I  feel  there  has  been  the 
need  of  a  strong  hand  to  keep  these  work- 


THE  PURIFICATION.  113 

ings  of"  evil  down.  I  know  I  carry  about  a 
sinful  nature !" 

So  let  us  remember  this  distinction 
between  *'  sin  "  and  **  sinfulness,"  and  beg  of 
God  gradually  to  cleanse  us  from  our  sinful- 
ness as  well  as  from  our  sin. 

This  helps  us  to  understand  the  distinction 
between  the  special  cleansing  given  us  in 
Absolution,  and  the  cleansing  power  of  the 
Body  and  Blood  of  Christ  in  Holy  Com- 
munion. Absolution  is  especially  for  the 
doing  away  of  sins.  Where  a  sin  has  come 
in  and  clogged  my  spiritual  life  and  hindered 
the  free  flow  of  regenerate  life,  absolution 
is  the  putting  forth  of  a  spiritual  power  to 
break  down  the  barrier,  and  to  cleanse  away 
that  which  clogs  the  spiritual  life.  But  Holy 
Communion — we  are  to  come  to  that  after 
repentance,  with  our  sin  forgiven  and  our 
conscience  at  ease,  by  our  own  drawing  near 
to  God  and  making  our  peace  with  Him,  or, 
if  need  be,  by  special  confession  and  priestly 
absolution.  On  the  other  hand,  the  Blessed 
Sacrament  of  the  Altar  is  for  the  cleansing 
of  our  sinfulness,   for  the  infusion  of  our 


114  THE  VIRGIN  MOTHER. 

Lord's  holy  Nature  to  remedy  all  the  defile- 
ments of  our  fallen  nature,  "  that  our  sinful 
bodies  may  be  made  clean  by  His  *  all-holy  * 
Body,  and  our  *  sin-stained '  souls  washed 
in  His  most  precious  Blood  by  the  com- 
munication of  His  life." 

Think  how  we  may  have  to  wait,  like 
Blessed  Mary,  for  some  nearer  approach  to 
Him,  some  deeper  sanctification  of  our 
spiritual  life,  some  fresh  entrance  into  the 
Temple  of  the  Lord,  until,  at  last,  the  days 
of  our  purification  are  accomplished !  Some- 
times we  are  so  lacking  in  patience  and 
humility — we  want  to  die  right  off!  We 
don't  know  what  need  there  is  of  purging 
first,  of  cleansing  within  and  without.  We 
have  to  wait  for  the  resurrection  of  the  body 
and  the  entire  rectifying  of  our  nature  to 
usher  in  the  life  of  the  world  to  come ;  and 
meanwhile  we  must  use  all  the  means  of 
grace  at  hand,  all  the  sacraments,  all  the 
disappointments  and  trials  of  life,  all  the 
friction  and  vexations  of  life,  that  our  earth- 
liness  and  selfishness  may  be  more  and  more 
done  away.    And  then,  when  all  the  discipline 


THE  PURIFICATION.  115 

of  life  is  done,  there  is  still  the  purification 
of  the  intermediate  state — the  seeing  our- 
selves as  we  are,  as  we  see  Him  in  His  glory. 
*  *  I  have  heard  of  Thee  by  the  hearing  of  the 
ear,  but  now  mine  eye  seeth  Thee;  where- 
fore I  abhor  myself,  and  repent  in  dust  and 
ashes,"*  in  ever  deepening  penitence,  until 
at  last  in  perfected  penitence  we  find  per- 
fected purification,  and  enter  the  Temple  of 
the  Lord  to  present  the  Christ-child  formed 
within  us,  in  our  life,  our  talents,  our 
gifts,  our  circumstances,  by  the  Spirit's 
power. 

Once  more,  consider  the  spiritual  signifi- 
cance of  the  special  law  of  purification  after 
childbearing  to  which  the  Blessed  Mother 
was  subject,  as  laid  down  in  Levit.  xii.  We 
find  that  in  the  case  of  purification  after  the 
birth  of  a  man-child  (with  which  we  are 
alone  concerned)  there  were  these  two 
stages,  symbolical  of  two  stages  of  progress 
in  the  spiritual  life.  First,  for  seven  days 
the  mother  was  excluded  from  fellowship 
with  ordinary  society.  On  the  eighth  day 
*  Job  xlii.  5. 


Ii6  THE  VIRGIN  MOTHER. 

the  mother  entered  on  the  second  stage  of 
her  purification;  she  was  restored  to  the 
company  of  her  fellows,  she  was  allowed  to 
enter  upon  social  intercourse;  but  still  for 
thirty -three  days  more  she  was  excluded 
from  participation  in  the  Temple  rites;  she 
could  not  yet  enter  the  Temple  of  the 
Lord. 

So,  remember,  there  are  stages  of  purifi- 
cation in  our  spiritual  experience.  There 
is  a  ceasing  to  do  evil,  then  a  learning  to  do 
well;  a  putting  off  of  the  old  man  and  his 
deeds,  and  a  putting  on  of  the  new  man 
which  after  God  is  created  in  righteousness 
and  true  holiness.*  There  are  two  conver- 
sions of  which  St.  Bernard  speaks.  He  says 
that  there  is  need  of  conversion  from  the 
world  to  self ;  like  the  prodigal  son,  who 
**came  to  himself"  and  found  the  world 
unsatisfying;  and  then  there  is  the  second 
conversion,  from  self  to  God ;  first  we  have 
to  gain  a  true  possession  of  ourselves,  and 
then  to  use  that  possession  in  giving  our- 
selves to  God,  losing  sight  of  self  in  seeking 

*  Ephes.  iv.  22-25. 


THE  PURIFICATION.  117 

the  glory  of  God  and  the  good  of  our 
brethren.  So  again  we  learn  of  the  pro- 
gressive stages  of  spiritual  development. 
Don't  hurry  people,  don't  drive  the  flock  too 
fast  and  hard,  and  don't  be  impatient  with 
your  own  slow  growth.  And  in  the  divi- 
sions of  the  days  of  purification  we  may  find 
a  spiritual  signification.  The  seven  days 
will  represent  the  Old  Testament  dispensa- 
tion— the  purgative  way,  under  the  Law. 
Then,  on  the  eighth  day,  when  the  Saving 
Name  is  given,  that  is  closed.  But  there  are 
thirty-three  days  more — a  day  for  each  year 
of  the  earthly  life  of  the  Incarnate  Son, 
so  making  up  the  number  forty,  in  Holy 
Scripture  signifying  the  full  number  of  pro- 
bation and  discipline.  Yes,  we  are  to  follow 
the  Lord  in  all  the  stages  and  departments 
of  His  life — in  the  hidden  life  at  Nazareth ; 
in  His  tempted  life  in  the  wilderness ;  in  His 
social  life  with  His  disciples  and  His  friends 
at  Bethany;  in  His  ministerial  life,  ''going 
about  doing  good,"  spending  and  being  spent 
for  others ;  ever  full  of  compassion  for  us  in 
our  needs,  in  toil  for  others,   in  works  of 


Ii8  THE  VIRGIN  MOTHER. 

mercy,  corporal  and  spiritual;  in  His  devo- 
tional life,  in  His  nights  of  prayer,  in  His 
early  mornings  given  to  communion  with  His 
Heavenly  Father,  in  His  lifting  up  His  eyes 
to  Heaven  in  the  midst  of  work,  putting 
Himself  in  conscious  communion  with  His 
Father.  And  then,  likewise,  in  His  suffering 
life.  Ah!  yes;  to  follow  Him  in  each  of 
those  thirty-three  days,  in  each  stage  and  de- 
partment of  His  life ;  to  set  Him  before  us 
in  each  department  of  our  life,  in  our  domes- 
tic life,  in  our  devotional  life,  in  all  the  ex- 
periences of  sorrow  and  sufiEering  that  may 
befall  us.  Ah!  Blessed  Lord,  grant  that  I 
may  truly  follow  Thee  step  by  step,  as  Thou 
dost  present  Thyself  to  me  as  my  perfect 
example;  day  by  day  putting  off  the  old 
man,  and  imitating  Thee,  becoming  more 
and  more  conformed  to  Thy  perfect  likeness ; 
in  the  purgative  way  and  the  illuminative 
way  filling  up  the  days  of  my  purification, 
till  in  the  unitive  way  I  may  present  the 
fruit  of  grace  formed  within  me,  and  in  the 
Temple  courts  may  sing  Magnificat  for  the 
great  things  that   Thou    has   accomplished. 


THE  PURIFICATION.  119 

**For  He  that  is  mighty  hath  magnified  me, 
and  holy  is  His  Name ! " 

Let  us  say  Psalm  xxvi. 


SEVENTH   MEDITATION. 

THE    FLIGHT    INTO    EGYPT. 

Let  us  meditate  upon  the  Flight  of  the  Holy 
Family  into  Egypt.  Contemplate  the  vision 
beheld  by  St.  John.*  The  woman  clothed 
with  the  sun,  with  the  moon  under  her 
feet,  and  having  a  crown  of  twelve  stars 
upon  her  head;  travailing  in  birth  to  bring 
forth  the  Man-Child  which  shall  rule  the 
world.  And  see  over  against  her  the  mon- 
strous beast,  the  great  red  dragon,  standing 
before  the  woman,  ready  to  devour  her 
Child.  And  the  dragon  persecutes  the 
woman  and  is  wroth  with  her,  and  makes 
war  with  the  remnant  of  her  seed  which 
keep  the  commandments  of  God  and  the 
testimony  of  Jesus  Christ. 

O  Lord  Jesus  Christ,  the  Eternal  Son  of 
God,  who  wast  in  the  world  that  was  made 

*  Rev.  xii. 

X20 


THE  FLIGHT  INTO  EGYPT.  121 

by  Thee,  and  the  world  knew  Thee  not; 
who  didst  come  to  Thine  own,  and  Thine 
own  received  Thee  not;*  pardon,  we  be- 
seech Thee,  all  our  past  resistance  to  Thy 
grace,  and  grant  that  now  henceforth  we, 
falling  into  rank  beneath  Thy  banner,  may 
show  ourselves  Thy  true  servants  and  sol- 
diers, ready  to  bear  the  opposition  of  the 
world,  the  uprisings  of  our  own  fallen 
nature,  and  the  assaults  of  Satan,  for  Thy 
Name's  sake.  Do  Thou  ever  guard  us 
from  evil,  and  overrule  all  contrary  things 
to  our  good,  and  enable  us  to  serve 
Thee  faithfully,  for  Thy  mercy's  sake, 
who  livest  and  reignest  with  the  Father 
and  the  Holy  Ghost,  one  God,  world 
without  end.  Amen, 
Our  Father. 

The  figure  of  the  woman  clothed  with  the 
sun,  and  with  the  moon  under  her  feet,  and 
having  on  her  head  the  crown  of  twelve 
stars,  as  beheld  by  St.  John  in  his  vision  at 
Patmos,  and  recorded  in  the  12  th  chapter 
*  St.  John  i.  10,  II. 


122  THE  VIRGIN  MOTHER. 

of  the  Apocalypse,  stands  for  the  Church  of 
God  in  every  age,  bringing  forth  Christ  to 
the  world.  It  has  nothing  whatever  to  do 
with  the  Blessed  Mother  in  her  present  ex- 
altation. It  may  be  applied  to  her  as  the 
type  of  the  Church  collectively,  and  of  every 
individual  soul  among  the  company  of  the 
faithful.  She  brings  forth  Christ  personally; 
the  Church  is  ever  bringing  forth  Christ  in 
the  spirit.  In  every  new  planting  of  the 
Church  in  the  mission-field,  in  every  new 
religious  movement,  in  every  establishment 
of  a  guild  or  religious  society,  in  every  fresh 
individual  resolve  to  live  for  Christ  more 
faithfully — there  is  the  bringing  forth  of 
Christ  in  some  fresh  manifestation  of  His 
grace  and  truth. 

And  over  against  that  figure  ever  stands 
the  great  red  dragon,  the  foe  of  Christ,  ready 
to  destroy  the  new  birth  of  the  Divine 
life. 

So  was  it  with  Israel  in  Egypt ;  so  was  it 
with  Christ  born  after  the  flesh;  **  Herod 
sought  the  young  Child's  life  to  destroy  it."  * 
*  St.  Matt.  ii.  13. 


THE  FLIGHT  INTO  EGYPT.  123 

So  was  it  with  the  infant  Church ;  the  Roman 
empire  rose  up  to  blot  it  out;  and  when 
Satan  failed  by  persecution  to  destroy  the 
seed,  he  sought  to  strangle  it  by  heresy  or 
to  seduce  the  Church  by  worldliness.  Ever 
over  against  the  woman  bringing  forth  the 
Man-Child  stands  the  great  red  dragon,  seek- 
ing to  destroy  His  life.  So  it  is  in  our  own 
experience.  We  make  some  special  resolu- 
tion and  we  find  some  fresh  obstacle.  Some 
new  start  is  made  in  mission-work;  then 
fresh  difficulties  and  hindrances  arise.  All 
this  is  quite  natural ;  we  are  not  to  be  in  the 
least  surprised  or  discouraged. 

I.  Consider,  first,  the  necessary  antagonism 
that  exists  between  the  Church  and  the  world, 
the  woman  and  the  dragon.  It  is  through 
the  bruising  of  the  heel  oi\  the  woman's  Seed 
that  the  serpent's  head  is  to  be  crushed; 
it  is  only  through  struggle  that  Redemption 
is  to  be  gained ;  it  is  only  through  suffering 
that  victory  can  be  effected. 

And,  as  with  the  Church,  so  with  the 
individual.      Don't  think   that  any  opposi- 


124  THE  VIRGIN  MOTHER. 

tion  you  may  meet  with  in  your  life  or  in 
your  work  is  any  necessary  sign  of  God's 
displeasure;  rather  it  may  be  the  reverse. 
Satan  sees  some  germ  of  the  Divine  Life 
which,  if  it  be  allowed  to  grow,  will  work 
ruin  to  his  kingdom,  and  he  starts  up  to 
oppose  it.  Or  the  world  scoffs  and  ridi- 
cules it.  Yes ;  we  are  always  to  expect  op- 
position; it  is  a  sign  of  the  Divine  Life 
asserting  itself  in  a  fallen  world.  So,  when 
He  came  into  the  world,  when  **the  Word 
was  made  flesh,"  and  "He  came  unto  His 
own,  and  His  own  received  Him  not," 
Herod,  as  the  representative  of  this  world's 
power,  sees  his  own  throne  tottering  and 
seeks  to  destroy  the  new-born  King.  So  it 
was  with  our  Blessed  Lord  after  His  bap- 
tism. Mark  the  sequence  of  mysteries 
in  our  Lord's  life.  After  His  Baptism, 
when  the  heavens  were  opened  above  Him, 
the  Spirit  was  seen  descending  and  resting 
upon  Him,  and  the  voice  of  the  Eternal 
Father  was  heard  proclaiming,  **This  is  My 
beloved  Son;"  then,  immediately,  "He  is 
led  into  the  wilderness  to  be  tempted  of  the 


THE  FLIGHT  INTO  EGYPT.  125 

devil."*  Before  He  enters  on  His  ministry, 
before  He  works  a  single  miracle,  preaches  a 
single  sermon,  or  wins  a  single  disciple,  He 
will  constitute  Himself  "a  merciful  and 
faithful  High  Priest;"  *'for,  in  that  He 
Himself  hath  suffered,  being  tempted,  He 
is  able  to  succour  them  that  are  tempted."  f 
He  earns  His  right  to  teach  and  lead.  Mark 
the  Temptation  before  the  Ministry,  and  the 
Temptation  following  right  upon  the  Bap- 
tism. 

There  stands  the  Evil  One.  **Let  us  see 
what  it  means.  Art  Thou  the  Son  of  God  ? 
What  means  the  proclamation?  Has  the 
Spirit  descended  on  Him  ?  It  shall  be 
wrested  from  Him !  " 

Ah!  we  are  often  discouraged  because 
after  receiving  some  grace  some  fiery  trial 
assaults  us.  It  is  just  the  time  to  make 
the  grace  our  own;  as  we  act  upon  the 
grace  given,  the  grace  is  appropriated  and 
assimilated  by  us. 

It  was  so,  again,  after  the  institution  of 
the  other  great  sacrament.  Jesus  leads 
*  St.  Matt.  iii.  4.  f  Heb.  ii.  17,  18. 


126  THE  VIRGIN  MOTHER. 

His  disciples  forth  from  the  upper  cham- 
ber of  the  Eucharist  to  share  in  His  Pas- 
sion, to  the  Gethsemane  of  spiritual  wrest- 
ling, the  Gabbatha  of  contradiction,  the 
Golgotha  of  actual  suffering  and  death.  Ah ! 
if  we  would  worthily  show  forth  His  death 
in  holy  mysteries,  we  must  in  our  lives  be 
conformed  to  His  example. 

So  here  Mary,  who  is  brought  so  near  to 
Him,  begins  already  to  share  His  cup  of 
sorrows;  the  sword  begins  to  pierce  her 
heart  because  she  is  the  mother  of  Him  who 
is  **the  Man  of  Sorrows,  and  acquainted 
with  grief."  *  Think  of  Mary's  sorrow  when 
the  decree  goes  forth  from  Herod  to  de- 
stroy all  the  children  of  Bethlehem,  in  the 
hope  that  among  them  may  be  her  own 
Child.  That  Child,  as  Simeon  says,  is  set 
"for  the  fall  of  many  and  for  the  rising  of 
others  in  Israel,  and  for  a  sign  to  be 
spoken  against."!  Think  of  her  sorrow, 
not  only  for  herself;  she  must  share  His 
sorrow;  but  that,  be  sure,  is  not  the  first 
thought  in  her  heart.  She  sorrows  for  her 
*  Isaiah  liii.  3.  *  St.  Luke  ii.  34. 


THE  FLIGHT  INTO  EGYPT.  127 

Child — that  His  interests  should  be  jeop- 
ardized; she  sorrows  for  all  the  mothers  of 
Bethlehem;  she  sorrows  for  Herod,  too; 
hating  the  sin,  pitying  the  sinner.  Ah! 
**many  and  great  are  the  troubles  of  the 
righteous,  but  the  Lord  delivereth  him  out 
of  all."* 

Think  then  first  of  the  necessary  antag- 
onism between  the  Church  and  the  world, 
between  Christ  and  Satan.  The  Child  is 
born,  and  the  enemy  seeks  to  destroy  its 
life.  Be  prepared  for  opposition;  don't  be 
surprised  at  difficulties  in  your  life  or  in  your 
work. 

II.  Consider  the  example  of  Detachment  ; 
for  that  is  the  lesson  we  learn  from  the  Flight 
into  Egypt.  Think  what  was  involved  in  it. 
Three  months  had  passed  since  the  birth  in 
Bethlehem;  the  Magi  had  come  from  their 
distant  homes;  the  Holy  Family  are  now, 
comparatively,  comfortably  lodged  at  Bethle- 
hem; the  pressure  for  room  caused  by  the 
taxing  has  passed  away ;  they  are  no  longer 

*  Ps.  xxxiv.  19. 


128  THE  VIRGIN  MOTHER. 

in  the  stable,  the  Magi  found  them  in  their 
house.*  People,  too,  have  become  friendly, 
attracted  by  the  unearthly  sweetness  of  the 
Holy  Family;  their  attention  also  had  been 
aroused  by  the  message  of  the  shepherds, 
and  by  the  coming  of  the  Eastern  travellers. 
Mary  is  now  able  to  go  to  the  Temple  when 
she  pleases ;  she  is  in  comparative  proximity 
to  the  Temple  while  at  Bethlehem.  And 
Mary  at  Bethlehem  is  in  the  home  of  her 
ancestors;  she  is  of  the  line  of  David,  his 
heiress. 

It  has  been  supposed  by  some  that  the 
very  stable  in  which  the  Saviour  was  born 
belonged  to  the  old  homestead  of  David  and 
Jesse;  that  the  little  town  had  grown  up 
around  it,  and  that  then  it  was  used  as  the 
caravansary  of  the  place. 

Mary  is  at  home  in  Bethlehem,  in  a  place 
full  of  sacred  associations.  And  now  all  this 
is  to  be  sacrificed.  There  comes  the  message 
to  arise  at  once,  and  fly  into  Egypt — into 
Egypt,  where,  indeed,  there  is  a  considerable 
colony  of  Jews,  and  where  they  would-be  free 

*St.  Matt.ii.  II.         ^i 


THE  FLIGHT  INTO  EGYPT.  129 

from  Herod's  jurisdiction  and  interference; 
but  it  is  a  heathen  country,  and  associated  in 
the  mind  of  every  patriotic  Hebrew  with  the 
idea  of  bondage  and  of  Israel's  degrada- 
tion. 

Carr^-  the  Child  there — to  such  a  desolation? 
Oh,  how  strange  are  God's  ways!  *' His  ways 
are  not  our  ways,  nor  His  thoughts  our 
thoughts."*  He  gives  such  strange,  para- 
doxical commands,  so  contrary  to  what  we 
should  have  thought!  And  they  go.  Ah! 
think  of  it. 

Are  we  called  to  leave  some  Bethlehem  ? 
Are  we  despatched  to  some  spiritual  Egypt  ? 
Are  we  called  to  give  up  some  cherished  at- 
traction, some  bosom  companion,  some 
helpful  guide,  and  sent  to  some  spiritual 
Egypt  to  carry  our  experiences  to  those  who 
are  less  privileged  than  ourselves,  to  impart 
to  them  what  God  has  given  to  us  ?  Or  are 
we  laid  by  through  sickness,  and  compelled 
to  give  up  some  cherished  work,  not  for  our- 
selves, but  for  the  good  of  others  ?  Are  we 
disqualified  by   sickness,  or    by    invalidism, 

*  Isaiah  Iv.  8. 


I30  THE  VIRGIN  MOTHER. 

which  is  worse  ?  It  is  like  being  sent  into 
Egypt.  Do  we  go  like  Mary,  promptly, 
carrying  the  child  with  us  ?  Or  are  we  in- 
wardly rebellious,  repining,  discontented, 
reluctant  ? 

They  go  **with  haste;"  they  pack  up  and 
start  at  once.  Egypt  will  not  be  the  land  of 
desolation  if  God  bids  them  go  thither,  and 
if  they  carry  the  Child  with  them.  Palestine 
would  be  no  **  Holy  Land,"  nor  Bethlehem 
**the  house  of  bread,"  unless  they  were 
there  at  God's  bidding.  **No,  Lord,  let 
Egypt  be  my  dwelling,  at  Thy  command; 
not  the  Holy  Land  with  all  its  privileges, 
nor  Bethlehem,  at  my  own  self-will.  Any- 
where with  Thee,  O  Lord ;  nowhere  without 
Thee ! "  **  Lord,  I  will  follow  Thee  whither- 
soever Thou  goest."  *  "In  all  places  where 
I  record  My  Name,  I  will  come  unto  thee 
and  I  will  bless  thee;"  f  but  at  no  altar  which 
thou  hast  devised  and  erected  for  thyself,  for 
thine  own  will- worship !  Are  we  ready  to 
leave  our  spiritual  privileges  and  blessings 
when  God  in  one  way  or  another  deprives  us 
*  St.  Luke  ix.  27.  f  Ex.  xx.  24. 


THE  FLIGHT  INTO  EGYPT.  131 

of  them  ?  How  often  we  have  our  perverted 
ideas  of  what  means  of  grace  and  sacraments 
are  to  do  for  us  !  We  have  an  idea  that  all 
are  to  support  us  and  to  hedge  us  round; 
that,  while  we  are  weak  and  tottering, 
Almighty  God  will  put  a  strong  staff  in  our 
hand  on  which  we  may  lean  !  Almighty 
God  will  do  nothing  of  the  kind.  He  gives 
us  His  sacraments  to  be  our  food  and 
strength,  so  that  we  may  come  to  live  by  His 
indwelling  might. 

When  from  time  to  time,  from  one  cause 
or  another,  we  are  debarred  from  the  means 
of  grace,  then  is  the  time  to  show  what  we 
have  gained  from  them  in  the  past ;  and  that 
we  have  not  merely  enjoyed  them,  but  prof- 
ited by  them. 

Let  us  think,  then,  what  a  lesson  of  de- 
tachment Blessed  Mary  gives  us,  not  from 
mere  natural  human  associations,  but  from 
whatever  God  sees  fit  to  withdraw  from  us. 

in.  Consider  the  example  of  Obedience  and 
its  reward  that  we  have  in  the  Flight  of  the 
Holy  Family  into  Egypt. 


132  THE  VIRGIN  MOTHER. 

We  may  note  five  points  concerning  it : 

(i.)  The  security  which  comes  from  obedi- 
ence. 

Thus  the  young  Child's  life  is  saved. 
The  Angel  comes  with  the  warning  message, 
*'  Herod  will  seek  the  young  Child's  life  to 
destroy  it.  Arise,  flee  into  Egypt. "J  And 
Joseph  obeys ;  he  takes  the  young  Child 
and  His  mother,  and  the  life  of  Jesus  is  pre- 
served. 

Ah !  how  often  an  angel  comes  to  us  with 
a  warning  word — ''they  seek  the  young 
child's  life!" — that  young  child  of  grace  in 
the  good  resolution  you  made  at  the  begin- 
ning of  Advent,  or  at  your  Christmas  Com- 
munion, or  at  the  opening  of  the  New  Year, 
or  in  the  resolve  with  which  you  leave  your 
Retreat.  * '  They  seek  the  young  child's  life ! " 
— the  world,  the  flesh,  the  devil,  your  own 
besetting  sin,  your  special  temptation  is  lying 
in  wait ;  avoid  the  occasion  of  evil ! 

How  often  have  we  neglected  that  warn- 
ing voice  which  came  to  us  in  some  inspira- 
tion— the   word    of  a  parent,   the   warning 

X  St.  Matt.  ii.  13. 


THE  FLIGHT  INTO  EGYPT.  133 

of  a  friend,  or  the  counsel  of  a  spiritual 
guide!  We  were  allowing  ourselves  some 
liberty;  the  voice  said,  *'  Beware!  "  We  dis- 
regarded it,  and  the  young  child  received 
some  injury;  maybe,  it  was  killed  outright. 

Or,  on  the  other  hand,  the  warning  came 
and  we  listened.  *'  Beware  of  that  evil, 
avoid  that  reading,  that  companionship, 
that  amusement!"  It  was  not  in  itself 
wrong,  but  for  us  it  was  seen  to  be  danger- 
ous. We  looked  back  afterwards,  and  we 
saw  what  a  danger  we  had  escaped.  And 
that  other,  who  would  not  heed,  fell  into  the 
danger  and  received  a  deadly  injury.  Learn 
the  lesson  of  prompt  obedience,  to  save  the 
life  of  the  child  of  grace. 

(ii.)  We  have  the  example  of  unconditional 
obedience.  "  Go,  flee  into  Egypt,  and  be 
thou  there  until  I  bring  thee  word  again." 
Not  for  two  months,  or  six,  or  twelve;  not 
for  two  years  or  four.  No  time  is  specified, 
no  term  is  given;  but,  "until  I  bring  thee 
word  again." 

We  must  not  make  .conditions  with  God; 
and  yet  we  are  always  trying  to  do  so.     **I 


134  THE  VIRGIN  MOTHER. 

can  submit  to  this^  but  that  I  cannot  stand ! " 
* '  I  can  take  this  sickness,  but  that  disap- 
pointment I  cannot  bear!"  '*I  can  be  put 
aside  for  this  winter,  but  not  beyond!  " 

Ah !  there  must  be  no  making  terms  with 
God;  the  obedience  must  be  unconditional. 
* '  Go.  Be  ready  to  do^  to  he,  to  bear  what  I 
order  now,  and  then  thou  wilt  be  ready  to 
do,  to  be,  to  bear  whatever  I  have  in  store 
for  thee  in  the  future."  Remember  St. 
Jeanne  Chantal's  paraphrase  of  the  Lord's 
Prayer :  * '  Without  '  if, '  without  *  but, '  with- 
out exception,  without  limit.  Thy  will,  O 
Lord,  be  done."  Yes;  ''flee  into  Egypt,  and 
be  thou  there  until  I  bring  thee  word  again." 

(iii.)  Then,  again,  consider  how  all  this 
trouble  came  through  the  wickedness  and 
violence  of  King  Herod.  It  was  that  which 
rendered  the  Flight  necessary.  It  was  his 
envy,  his  fear,  lest  his  own  usurped  sway 
should  come  to  an  end. 

How  often  do  we  resent  trials  that  come 
to  us  through  the  mistakes  or  the  faults  of 
others.  We  say,  * '  If  it  came  directly  from 
the  hand  of  God  I  could  accept  it."     So  we 


THE  FLIGHT  INTO  EGYPT.  135 

say,  and  so  we  think.  *  *  But  it  does  not ;  it 
comes  from  the  stupidity  and  perverseness 
of  this  or  that  person ! "  What  did  the 
Passion  of  our  Lord  Jesus  Christ  come 
from  ?  Was  it  arranged  by  Heaven  ?  It  was 
all  the  work  of  hell — base,  false,  cruel. 
**  This  is  your  hour  and  the  power  of  dark- 
ness,"* said  our  Lord;  and  yet,  almost  in 
the  same  breath,  **The  cup  which  My 
Father  hath  given  Me,  shall  I  not  drink  it  ? "  f 
These  two  words  of  our  Lord  at  His  appre- 
hension in  the  Garden  represent  the  two 
aspects  of  all  sorrow  and  all  suffering.  Re- 
gard it  as  the  cup  which  the  Lord  gives, 
although  it  may  be  tendered  by  an  evil  hand. 
God  allows  many  things  that  He  does  not 
inspire,  and  He  will  overrule  for  good  all  the 
evil  that  He  allows,  if  only  we  will  take  it 
aright.  "The  cup  which  my  Father  gives," 
appeals  to  all  the  loving,  trustful  submission 
that  is  in  me.  "This  is  your  hour  and  the 
power  of  darkness,"  appeals  to  all  that  is 
noble,  strong,  brave  and  generous  in  me.  I 
will  not  be  beaten ;  I  will  stand  my  ground ! 
*St.  Luke  xxii.  53.  f  St.  John  xviii.  11. 


136  THE  VIRGIN  MOTHER. 

Think  of  this  in  any  sickness,  or  misunder- 
standing, or  opposition,  any  sorrow  or  suffer- 
ing that  may  befall  you;  think  of  its  two- 
fold aspect,  and  how  it  is  to  be  met  in  this 
twofold  spirit. 

(iv.)  Think  of  the  example  of  obedience  on 
the  part  of  those  set  to  rule.  It  is  the  par- 
ents who  obey,  those  who  are  in  charge  of 
the  Holy  Child.  They  have  to  show  them- 
selves obedient  to  the  Heavenly  Father 
whom  they  represent.  None  are  fitted  to 
rule  unless  they  have  first  learned  to  obey. 
Oh,  my  friends,  what  a  special  lesson  for  any 
of  us  who  are  charged  with  the  care  of 
others !  We  have  no  right  to  rule  unless  we 
can  submit  ourselves  as  those  under  author- 
ity. Children  are  to  obey  their  parents,  pas- 
tors, teachers,  ''in  the  Lord;"  but  these 
must  be  in  the  strict  line  of  representation ; 
we  must  be  obeying  Him  if  we  are  requiring 
obedience  from  others  in  His  Name;  if  we 
are  ourselves  lacking  in  obededience,  we  for- 
feit our  right  to  rule. 

See  what  a  wonderful  example  of  obedience 
is  shown  in  the  life  and  conduct  of  St.  Joseph, 


THE  FLIGHT  INTO  EGYPT.  137 

who  was  set  to  be  the  head  of  the  Holy 
Family,  the  guardian  of  the  Blessed  Mother, 
the  foster-father  of  the  Holy  Child.  On 
every  occasion  on  which  St.  Joseph  is  men- 
tioned in  the  Gospels,  he  is  acting  under 
obedience. 

(i.)  Before  our  Lord's  birth  Joseph  was  in 
sad  perplexity  as  to  the  purity  and  faithful- 
ness of  his  espoused  wife.  It  was  his  duty, 
according  to  the  Levitical  law  framed  to 
guard  the  sanctity  of  family  life,  to  put  her 
away.  He  was  about  to  act  in  obedience  to 
the  Levitical  law,  and,  at  the  same  time,  to 
obey  the  law  of  kindness  in  his  own  heart 
which  urged  him  to  do  it  privately.* 

(2.)  The  Angel  comes  and  gives  the  ex- 
planation which  sweeps  away  all  his  fears: 
**That  which  is  conceived  in  her  is  of  the 
Holy  Ghost."  f  He  bids  him  arise  and  take 
unto  him  his  wife,  and  give  her  shelter  and 
protection.  Without  hesitation  he  acts  on 
the  Angel's  word.  In  blind  faith  he  accepts 
the  explanation.  The  world  may  scoff  at 
his  simplicity,  but  **to  the  pure  all  things 
*St.  Matt.  i.  19.  fSt.  Matt.  i.  20. 


138  THE  VIRGIN  MOTHER.   . 

are  pure;"*  and  the  loving  and  the  gener- 
ous can  believe  in  the  faithfulness  of  others. 
He  takes  her  and  shelters  her. 

(3.)  They  go  to  Bethlehem  at  the  com- 
mand of  Csesar,  for  the  taxing,  f  He  obeys 
not  only  the  Angel,  he  obeys  God  through 
whatever  channel  the  command  comes. 
The  heathen  emperor  is  the  civil  ruler,  and 
in  his  sphere  he  represents  Almighty  God. 

(4.)  The  child  is  circumcised  on  the 
eighth  day  according  to  the  Law;  and  the 
Saving  Name  foretold  is  given  by  Joseph  in 
faith,!  as  the  Angel  had  bidden. 

(5.)  On  the  fortieth  day  the  mother  is  puri- 
fied and  the  Child  presented  and  redeemed.  § 

(6.)  And  now  at  the  bidding  of  the  Angel 
he  takes  the  young  Child  and  His  mother 
and  flees  into  Egypt,  and  waits  there  until 
the  Angel  comes  to  tell  them  that  **  they  are 
dead  which  sought  the  young  Child's  life." 

(7.)  Then  in  obedience  **  he  returns  into  the 
land  of  Israel." 

(8.)  As  he  returns,  when  he  hears  that 

*  Titus  i.  15.  t  St.  Luke  ii.  1-4. 

J  St.  Matt.  i.  21.        g  St.  Luke  ii.  21-25. 


THE  FLIGHT  INTO  EGYPT.  139 

Archelaus,  the  cruel  son  of  his  cruel  father, 
reigns  in  Judea,  and  he  is  afraid  to  go  thither, 
in  obedience  to  the  Angel's  word  in  a  dream, 
he  turns  aside  to  Nazareth.* 

(9.)  And  afterwards,  year  by  year,  he  is 
seen  attending  the  Temple  feast  at  Jerusa- 
lem, until  at  last  the  Child  is  initiated  in  the 
Law.f  And  then  his  work  is  done,  and  he 
passes  away;  the  Holy  Child  needs  no  longer 
his  guardianship.  **  Guided  by  His  counsel," 
He  will,  at  last,  '^receive  him  into  glory. "J 
And  after  a  little  while  that  Son  whom  he 
had  guarded  and  tended,  shall  come  and 
claim  him  in  Paradise. 

Thus  on  every  occasion  Joseph  is  seen 
acting  in  obedience  to  the  command  of  God, 
however  expressed,  whether  directly  by  in- 
spiration, or  by  the  word  of  an  Angel,  or 
through  the  ecclesiastical  or  the  civil  law. 
As  one  who  is  set  to  govern,  he  is  fitted  to 
rule  by  unhesitating,  unconditional  obedi- 
ence. 

(v.)  One  last  word.      Whe7t  we  obey  God's 

*  St.  Luke  ii.  22,  23.  f  St.  Luke  ii.  41,  42. 

X  Ps.  Ixxiii.  23. 


I40  THE  VIRGIN  MOTHER. 

word,  '■^  all  things  work  together  for  goody  * 
All  seemed  so  unlikely,  so  contrary,  but  all  is 
taken  into  account  by  Almighty  God.  All  is 
foreseen  and  arranged  for.  By  St.  Joseph's 
obedience  not  only  is  the  Child's  life  spared, 
but  the  old  prophecy  sees  its  fulfilment, 
**Out  of  Egypt  have  I  called  My  Son."  f  He 
turns  aside  to  Nazareth  at  the  Angel's  bid- 
ding, because  it  is  unsafe  to  dwell  where 
Archelaus  reigns,  and  another  saying  of  the 
prophet  is  fulfilled,  *  *  He  shall  be  called  a 
Nazarene."! 

Ah!  the  things  that  seem  so  untoward, 
that  are  due  to  people's  sins  and  Satan's 
wrath,  God  will  make  them  all  '*work  to- 
gether for  good;"  all  sorrows,  trials  and 
temptations,  yes,  and  even  our  falls,  if  re- 
pented of.  *  *  All  things  work  together  for 
good  to  them  that  love  God."  **  His  wisdom 
reacheth  from  one  end  to  another;  mightily 
and  sweetly  doth  it  order  all  things."  § 

Let  us  repeat  Psalm  Ixiii^ 

*Rom.  viii.  28.  fSt.  Matt.  ii.  15;   Hosea  xi.  I. 

4:  St.  Matt.  ii.  23.  \  Wisdom  viii.  i. 


EIGHTH  MEDITATION. 

THE    LOSING    AND     FINDING     OF    THE    HOLY 
CHILD    IN    THE    TEMPLE. 

Let  us  meditate  upon  Mary  losing  and  find- 
ing the  Holy  Child  in  the  Temple. 

Consider  her  remonstrance,  as  she  finds 
Him  after  the  three  days'  search.  *'  Son, 
why  has  Thou  thus  dealt  with  us  ?  Behold, 
Thy  father  and  I  have  sought  Thee  sorrow- 
ing." * 

O  Lord  Jesus  Christ,  deal  with  us,  we  pray 
Thee,  in  Thy  love  and  wisdom,  as  Thou  seest 
to  be  best  for  us.  Train  us  by  Thy  disci- 
pline; enable  us  to  grow  in  Thy  knowledge 
and  Thy  love;  remove  from  us  all  that  is 
displeasing  in  Thy  sight;  kindle  in  us  true 
devotion,  and  an  earnest  desire  to  serve 
Thee.  And  grant  that  when  the  trial  and 
discipline  of  life  is  over,  we  may  behold  Thee 

*  St.  Luke  ii.  48. 
141 


142  THE  VIRGIN  MOTHER. 

in  the  Heavenly  Temple,  and  in  Thy  pres- 
ence may  find  the  fulness  of  joy.  To  whom, 
with  the  Father  and  the  Holy  Ghost,  be  all 
honour  and  glory,  world  without  end. 
Amen. 

Our  Father. 

We  find  Mary  again  in  the  Temple  some 
twelve  years  after  we  beheld  her  there  at  her 
Purification.  She  then  presented  her  infant 
Child  to  the  Lord.  Now  He  accompanies 
her,  a  Boy  of  twelve  years  old;  and  we  have 
to  consider  a  mingled  mystery  of  joy  and 
sorrow.  She  has  a  joy  almost  greater  than 
any  she  has  yet  experienced,  and  a  sorrow 
certainly  not  less.  She  had  fled  from  Bethle- 
hem with  Him  to  preserve  His  life ;  now  for 
a  while  she  has  to  mourn  the  loss  of  Him. 
During  twelve  years  she  had  been  at  the 
Temple  feast ;  hitherto  she  had  left  Him  at 
home,  now  He  accompanies  her.  He  has 
come  of  age  to  be  initiated  into  the  Temple 
rites,  to  take  His  part  in  its  ceremonies ;  He 
has  become  a  Child  of  the  Law.  Think  what 
joy  is  hers  as  she  takes  her  Boy  in  that  cara- 


THE  HOLY  CHILD  IN  THE  TEMPLE.       143 

van  of  pilgrims  from   Bethlehem   to   Jeru- 
salem ! 

Some  of  you,  perhaps,  have  experienced  a 
like  joy  when  you  have  taken  your  child,  or 
a  pupil,  or  a  godchild,  to  Confirmation  or  to 
First  Communion.  Think  of  Mary  and  her 
Child,  and  what  joy  and  pride  swelled  her 
heart !  Think  of  the  new  meaning  that  came 
to  her  in  that  psalm,  when  she  said,  *  *  I  was 
glad  when  they  said  unto  me,  we  will  go  into 
the  house  of  the  Lord.  Our  feet  shall  stand 
in  thy  gates,  O  Jerusalem  !  "  *  Think  how 
she  knelt  by  His  side  in  the  Temple  courts; 
how  they  had  looked  forward  to  that  day, 
talked  about  it,  and  about  the  Temple  rites. 
And  now  they  see  them  all  enacted.  Think 
of  the  questions  He  asks,  and  of  her  explana- 
tions. Think  of  His  voice,  as  it  rings  out 
clear  among  the  voices  of  the  Levites,  as  they 
chant  David's  Psalms.  How  they  seem  to 
gain  new  meaning  as  He  utters  them !  As 
when  a  master-musician  takes  the  instru- 
ment into  his  hands,  and  we  never  knew 
what  sounds  it  could  give  forth  before;  so 

*Ps.  cxxii.  I. 


144  THE  VIRGIN  MOTHER. 

the  Psalter,  on  the  lips  of  the  Son  of  Man, 
rises  to  a  fulness  of  tone,  gains  a  richness  of 
harmony  never  known  before  in  the  Temple 
worship. 

Think  of  Mary's  joy  at  His  devotion, 
at  His  wisdom,  at  the  questions  He  asked 
when  being  catechized,  as  it  were,  by  the 
scribes  and  lawyers  in  the  Temple  court. 
We  are  not  to  think  of  our  Lord  as  sitting 
down  to  teach  the  doctors — such  an  idea 
would  be  altogether  preposterous !  The  doc- 
tors sat  round  in  a  semi-circle,  the  pupils  sat 
at  their  feet,  hearing  them  and  asking  them 
questions.  But  the  questions  He  asked  sug- 
gested meanings  such  as  they  had  never 
known ;  He  was  giving  far  more  information 
than  He  received;  they  were  amazed,  and 
His  mother  was  astonished  too;  there  was 
an  outshining  of  wisdom  in  her  Boy  such  as 
she  had  not  seen  before.    So  think  of  her  joy. 

But  remember  that  we  can  pray  along 
with  our  Lord  Jesus  Christ  in  a  better  and 
more  intimate  way  than  was  even  granted  to 
His  Blessed  Mother  in  the  Temple.  We  are 
incorporated  into  His  mystical  Body.     His 


THE  HOLY  CHILD  IN  THE  TEMPLE.      145 

Spirit  has  communicated  to  us  "the  mind  of 

Christ."     Not  until  after  Pentecost  could  she 

pray  **in  His  Name."     We  pray  not  along-' 

side  of  Him,  but  with  Him,  as  an  indwelling 

Inspirer.     Ah!    think   of   what  our    prayer 

should  be  in  the  sanctuary,  praying  along 

with  Christ,  as  members  of  Christ,  and  with 

the  aid  of  His  Spirit.     Think  what  it  means 

— to  pray  in   Chrisfs  Name,     It  does  not 

mean  just  to  tack  on  Christ's  Name  at  the 

end  of  a  prayer,   as   a   sort   of  charm;    as 

though  the  weak  petition  that  bubbles  out  of 

our  heart  could  gain  acceptance  if  so  offered 

in  His  Name  !     No ;  to  pray  in  Christ's  Name 

means   to  pray  with   Christ's  authority;   it 

means  to  have   Christ  praying  in  us  ;    we 

praying  the  prayers  He  prays — praying  under 

the  inspiration  of  our  Head.     Our  prayer  is 

not  simply  to  pass  through   His  Hands,  to 

find  an  echo  in  His  sacred  Heart.     No,  no; 

it  must  be  originated  in  His  Heart,  and  then 

echoed  by  us.     What  does  He  desire  for  me  ? 

I  must  beg  from  Him  the  Spirit  of  grace  and 

of  supplication,  that  I,  who  know  not  what  to 

pray  for,  nor  how  to  ask  as  I  ought,  may  be 


146  THE  VIRGIN  MOTHER. 

helped  by  the  Spirit  of  Christ,  that  I  may 
think  His  thoughts,  have  His  desires,  and 
pray  along  with  Him.*  Think  of  this  in  your 
private  prayers.  Think  of  the  reverence  and 
attention  that  should  characterize  prayers 
which  are  offered  along  with  Christ's  inter- 
cession. Think  of  yourself  as  kneeling  on 
one  of  the  lower  steps  of  the  Altar  Throne 
on  which  He  pleads  on  our  behalf,  gathering 
up  all  the  prayers  that  are  prayed  by  His 
faithful  servants  on  earth  and  in  Paradise. 
Think  of  the  spirituality  that  should  mark 
the  prayers  of  Christ's  members,  who  pray 
along  with  Him. 

Again,  think  of  prayer  at  the  Holy 
Eucharist.  He  joined  in  prayer  and  Mary 
joined  with  Him,  assisting  at  the  Temple 
sacrifice.  We  are  privileged  to  join  in  offer- 
ing the  Sacrifice  which  is  the  antitype  of 
all  the  Jewish  sacrifices.  The  Eucharist  is 
the  earthly  counterpart  of  the  Heavenly 
pleading.  We  contend  that  the  Holy  Euchar- 
ist is  the  great  central  act  of  devotion,  that 
it  is  the  only  divinely  appointed  service  of 

*  St.  John  xvi.  23,  24 ;  Rom.  viii.  26. 


THE  HOLY  CHILD  IN  THE  TEMPLE.       147 

the  Christian  Church;  that  nothing  must  be 
allowed  to  take  its  place,  whatever  may  be 
the  most  convenient  arrangement  of  services. 
But  we  so  often  make  a  mistake  here. 
The  Holy  Eucharist  is  not  our  great  act  of 
worship  because  in  it  we  plead  and  offer 
Christ  as  our  substitute.  He  is  not  our 
substitute,  He  is  our  great  Leader  and 
Representative.  He  did  not  die  that  we 
might  not  die;  He  did  not  suffer  that  we 
might  lead  a  self-indulgent,  luxurious  life! 
We  must  arm  ourselves  with  His  mind.*  He 
does  for  us  that  which,  without  Him,  we 
could  never  have  attempted,  but  in  which 
we  must  share  if  we  would  be  partakers  of 
the  benefits  of  His  life  and  death.  It  is 
not  His  death  as  our  substitute  that  we 
plead.  We  gather  round  about  Him,  and 
He  leads  our  devotions.  As  we  show  forth 
His  **  obedience  unto  death,  "f  in  His  own 
appointed  way;  as  we  plead 

The  only  offering  perfect  in  Thine  eyes, 
The  one,  true,  pure,  immortal  sacrifice, 

we    must    **  offer    and     present     ourselves, 

*  I  St.  Pet.  iv.  I.  t  Pliil.  ii-  8. 


148  THE  VIRGIN  MOTHER. 

our  souls  and  bodies"  along  with  Him, 
as  our  reasonable  service  to  the  Father. 
It  is  His  obedience  that  God  delights  in, 
not  His  death.  God  delights  not  in 
death;  not  in  mine,  or  yours,  or  His  dear 
Son's;  but  in  obedience.  It  is  the  will- 
ingness to  suffer  in  God's  cause  unto  death, 
the  ''obedience  unto  death,"  with  which 
God  is  well  pleased.  That  is  the  offering  we 
show  forth  in  glad  thanksgiving  and  exulta- 
tion, and  at  the  same  time  proclaim  as  the 
law  of  life  for  ourselves  to  follow,  in  the 
Eucharistic  mystery. 

Ah!  think  what  our  Eucharists  involve. 
There  the  Head  gathers  the  members  about 
Him;  He  ofiEers  them  along  with  Himself, 
and  the  Church  offers  herself  along  with 
Him,  the  great  Head,  the  Representative  of 
the  Christian  Society.  As  we  gather  round 
our  Leader  and  assist  in  the  presentation  of 
Him  who  is  both  Priest  and  Victim,  He 
makes  us,  likewise,  * '  kings  and  priests  unto 
God  and  His  Father."* 

But  if  we  go  forth  from  our  Eucharists  to 
*Rev.  i.  6. 


THE  HOLY  CHILD  IN  THE  TEMPLE:       149 

live  idle,  self-indulgent,  self-pleasing  lives, 
think,  what  are  our  Eucharists  but  our  con- 
demnation? This  is  what  we  plead;  this  is 
what  God  delights  in — Christ's  obedience  unto 
death^  and  we  rule  the  straight,  clear  line 
of  His  obedience,  only  to  make  more  plain 
the  crookedness  of  our  own  want  of  corre- 
spondence with  His  will ! 

Think,  then,  of  Mary  joining  with  Him  in 
that  worship  of  the  Temple ;  and  let  us  think 
of  ourselves  joining  with  Him  in  better 
fashion  in  the  great  Sacrament  of  the 
Eucharist. 

Think  again,  how  Mary  in  that  Temple 
worship  gained  a  new  realization  of  her 
Son's  character  and  personal  dignity. 

And  think  how  we,  year  after  year,  festi- 
val after  festival.  Retreat  after  Retreat, 
are  to  grow  in  the  knowledge  and  love  of 
God,  and  of  the  things  of  God;  keeping  the 
old  ways,  not  just  in  the  old  fashion,  but  div- 
ing down  to  a  deeper  significance,  rising 
higher  through  fresh  inspiration;  not  recur- 
ring to  them  as  mere  historical  events,  but 
as  sources  of  real  spiritual  power.     My  Bible 


ISO  THE  VIRGIN  MOTHER. 

reading,  my  spiritual  exercises,  my  Confes- 
sions, my  Communions,  my  Retreats — all  are 
to  help  me  grow  in  the  knowledge  and  love 
of  God.  Am  I  seeking  to  gain  a  newer  and 
truer  conception  of  the  things  of  God,  in 
nature,  in  providence,  in  grace  ?  Are  my 
heart  and  my  understanding  kindled  with  a 
new  knowledge  and  love  of  God?  Am  I 
seeking  to  attain  a  Qhildilike  spirit,  while  I 
put  away  child/j/^  things  ?  There  is  all  the 
difference  in  the  world  between  being  child- 
like and  childish!  We  are  to  ^^ put  away 
childish  things,"*  childish  conceptions  of 
prayer,  of  God,  of  the  sacraments,  of  our 
Christian  life;  while  we  retain  a  childlike 
spirit  of  trust  and  love.  All  this  is  diffi- 
cult. There  must  be  humility,  patience, 
trustfulness  and  love,  if  we  are  to  grow  in 
grace.  But  we  are,  remember,  to  offer  to 
God  the  homage  of  our  mental  faculties ;  we 
are  not  to  let  them  grow  in  secular  knowl- 
edge, while  they  remain  stagnant  and  undevel- 
oped as  regards  the  worthiest  of  all  acquire- 
ments— the  knowledge  of  spiritual  things. 
*i  Cor.  xiii.  ii. 


THE  HOLY  CHILD  IN  THE  TEMPLE.       151 

Think,  then,  of  Mary  accompanying  her 
Son,  joining  in  'His  prayer,  assisting  with 
Him  in  offering  the  Temple  sacrifice,  gain- 
ing fresh  conception  of  His  character,  His 
dignity,  and  of  all  spiritual  things  along  with 
Him. 

n.  Then  think  of  the  sudden  change — the 
sorrowful  side  of  the  mystery  of  that  visit  to 
the  Temple.  Yes  ;  she  experiences  now  a 
sorrow  greater  than  that  of  the  reproach  of 
Nazareth,  or  the  anxiety  of  Bethlehem,  or 
the  flight  into  Egypt.  All  that  was  borne 
with  Him,  now  there  is  the  loss  of  Him  ! 

Ah  !  be  prepared  for  changes  of  experi- 
ence in  the  spiritual  life.  The  Magnificat, 
which  was  the  last  recorded  utterance  of 
Blessed  Mary,  is  followed  by  this  loving,  sor- 
rowful expostulation;  the  major  key  sinks 
down  to  its  plaintive  minor :  *  *  Son,  why  hast 
Thou  thus  dealt  with  us  ?" 

So  it  is  in  our  life !  There  is  a  time  of 
joy,  of  festival  joy,  of  spiritual  joy  in 
Retreat,  when  the  things  of  God  are  so  plain 
and  clear  that  we  almost  seem  to  see  them, 


152  THE  VIRGIN  MOTHER. 

to  lay  hold  of  them ;  it  seems  almost  absurd 
not  to  live  under  their  control;  the  super- 
natural seems  the  common  sense  view. 

Then  a  cloud  comes  and  settles  down  over 
us,  and  we  wonder  whether  it  could  all  have 
been  true.  That  state  of  ecstasy — was  it 
mere  emotion,  the  effect  of  the  imagination, 
or  of  some  fascinating  companionship  ? 

Yes,  there  are  all  sorts  of  vicissitudes  in 
spiritual  as  in  natural  circumstances,  and 
many  causes  contribute  to  them.  We  must 
be  prepared  for  them  just  as  much  as  we  are 
for  changes  of  climate.  Our  Magnificat  will 
often  sink  down  to  the  plaintive  expostula- 
tion with  the  Lord — "Why  hast  Thou  thus 
dealt  with  us  ? " 

It  is  worth  noticing  the  sequence  of  say- 
ings of  the  Blessed  Mother.  There  are  just 
seven  in  the  Gospels,  which  mark  out,  as  it 
were,  the  experiences  of  the  spiritual 
life. 

(i.)  There  is  the  word  oi  prudence.  **  How 
shall  this  be  ? "  *  asked,  as  we  have  seen,  not 
in  doubt,  but  as  testing  the  spirit,   rightly 

*St.  Lukei.  34. 


THE  HOLY  CHILD  IN  THE  TEMPLE.       153 

seeking  to  be  assured  that  the  message  came 
from  God. 

(ii.)  Then,  so  assured,  there  comes  the 
answer  of  simple  self-surrender,  **  Behold 
the  handmaid  of  the  Lord ;  be  it  unto  me  ac- 
cording to  thy  word."* 

(iii.)  Then,  mark,  she  went  to  salute  St. 
Elizabeth  with  the  word  of  loving  kindness 
and  of  sympathy.  \  Her  great  dignity  did 
not  make  her  stand  on  her  rights,  or  wait  for 
Elizabeth  to  visit  her.  Her  great  joy  made 
her  full  of  loving-kindness.  **  He  that  loveth 
God  loveth  his  brother  also."  X 

(iv.)  Then  comes  her  central  saying,  in 
which  she  pours  out  her  whole  soul  to  God  in 
the  Magnificat,  § 

(v.)  Then  follows  this  word — the  word  of 
loving  remonstrance^  telling  of  trials  in  the 
|Spiritual  life.  **  Why  hast  Thou  thus  dealt 
with  us  ? "  II  Then  follow  the  two  other  say- 
ings, at  the  marriage  at  Cana  of  Galilee, 
which  we  shall  consider  later. 

*  St.  Luke  i.  38.  f  St.  Luke  i.  40. 

X 1  St.  John  iv.  21.        \  St.  Luke  i.  46-56. 
II  St.  Luke  il  48. 


154  THE  VIRGIN  MOTHER. 

(vi.)  One,  the  word  of  loving  intercession, 
bringing  the  needs  of  her  friends  before  our 
Lord,  seeing  their  difficulty  and  embarrass- 
ment. Her  own  sorrows  had  made  her  sym- 
pathetic; she  is  quick  and  eager  to  relieve 
others.     * '  They  have  no  wine !  "  * 

(vii.)  The  other,  as  she  retires  from  the 
scene  as  her  Son  enters  on  His  public  work, 
her  word  of  counsel — **  Whatsoever  He  saith 
unto  you,  do  it."t 

Look  for  something  corresponding  to  this 
in  your  own  life. 

Now  the  festival  is  over;  the  company 
are  returning  to  Nazareth;  the  caravan 
starts;  and  through  some  mistake  the 
Child  has  not  been  informed ;  they  start  with- 
out Him.  In  the  great  company  they  sup- 
pose Him  to  be  with  friends  and  are  not 
alarmed.  But  the  night  comes,  they  bivouac ; 
and  now  they  find  Him  not.  They  search 
for  Him  among  their  friends,  and  He  is  not 
there.  Think  of  the  agony  of  that  night  and 
how  hastily  they  retrace  their  steps  to  the 
Holy  City  the  next  morning.  All  that  day 
*  St.  John  ii.  3.  f  St.  John  ii.  5. 


THE  HOLY  CHILD  IN  THE  TEMPLE.       155 

they  search  for  Him;  another  night  passes 
and  they  find  Him  not;  not  until  the 
third  day  do  they  discover  Him  in  the  Tem- 
ple. 

O  think  of  the  sorrow  of  that  three  days* 
search!  And  is  there  not  something  of  re- 
proof in  our  Lord's  answer  to  His  mother's 
words:  **How  is  it  that  ye  sought  Me? 
Wist  ye  not  that  I  must  be  about  My 
Father's  business?"  Or,  rather — **/«  my 
Father's  house'' — for  that,  without  doubt, 
is  the  correct  translation.  "How  is  it  that 
ye  sought  Me?  What  did  you  go  to  the 
lodgings  for?  Why  did  you  seek  Me  in  the 
streets  or  in  friends*  houses?  Why  did  you 
not  come  to  the  Temple?  You  left  Me  here, 
and  here  I  am !  " 

Ah !  and  so  it  is  continually  in  our  own  ex- 
perience. It  is  not  the  Lord  who  has  with- 
drawn from  us,  but  we  from  Him.  We  can- 
not always  have  spiritual  fervour.  Maybe 
our  natural  powers  have  given  out — the  strain 
•was  too  great.  Or  maybe  our  spiritual 
powers  have  given  out;  some  temptation 
came  and  we  gave  way  to  it,  we  g^rew  lax  in 


156  THE  VIRGIN  MOTHER. 

self -discipline,  careless  in  our  prayers;  we 
were  not  faithful  to  the  inspirations  of  con- 
science; we  have  withdrawn  from  Him. 
And  then  we  ask  our  Lord,  **  Why  hast  Thou 
thus  dealt  with  us  ? "  And  He  answers, 
**Here  I  am;  I  was  waiting  to  hear  your 
prayer,  to  feed  you  with  My  word,  to  give 
you  Myself  in  the  sacrament.  *  Return  unto 
Me,  and  I  will  return  unto  you.'*  It  is  you 
who  have  changed ;  it  is  you  who  went  away 
from  My  presence;  it  is  you  who  deserted 
My  holy  Temple.  Or,  you  sought  to  distract 
yourself  in  earthly  pleasures  and  companion- 
ship, and  you  have  failed !  Ah !  come  back 
to  Me,  and  find  in  Me  the  joy  and  strength  of 
your  spiritual  life !" 

We  are  not  to  be  surprised  at  such  experi- 
ences, nor  to  be  discouraged  by  them.  God 
tries  His  chosen  servants.  He  would  lead 
Mary  and  Joseph  to  value  their  treasure  more 
highly,  since  they  have  been  without  Him 
those  three  days.  Oh,  how  careful  would  they 
be  afterwards,  not  to  let  Him  out  of  their 
sight,  that   there   should  be   no  more    mis- 

*Mal.  iii.  7. 


THE  HOLY  CHILD  IN  THE  TEMPLE.      157 

understanding,  but  all  quite  plain  and 
clear. 

And  when  we  have  no  sensible  consolation, 
when  all  our  spiritual  exercises  seem  dry  and 
dull,  all  mere  forms,  and  we  hardly  know 
how  to  drag  ourselves  along  in  our  spiritual 
life.  He  would  have  us  cling  to  Him  more 
closely,  since  we  know  how  barren  and  dry  a 
thing  life  is  without  Him.  **Like  as  the 
hart  desireth  the  water-brooks,  so  longeth  my 
soul  after  Thee,  O  God."* 

So  think  of  Mary's  joy  and  sorrow  as  the 
type  and  pattern  of  your  spiritual  experi- 
ence. 

HI.  Was  there  not  some  sense  of  failure 
on  Joseph's  part,  of  neglected  responsibility  ? 
Ought  he  to  have  lost  sight  of  the  Holy 
Child  ?  Ought  he  to  have  started  without 
ascertaining  that  He  was  in  the  company,  to 
have  trusted  to  the  chance  of  finding  Him  ? 
Think  of  the  remorse  of  St.  Joseph.  Mary 
might  have  chidden  him :  **  It  was  your  part 
to  keep  watch  over  the  Boy ;  you  are  His 
*  Ps.  xUi.  I. 


158  THE  VIRGIN  MOTHER. 

appointed  guardian !"  And  how  he  must  have 
chidden  himself  for  his  thoughtlessness  and 
carelessness. 

Think  of  that  as  a  sort  of  typical  warning 
for  any  of  us  who  are  put  in  charge  of  the 
spiritual  life  of  others,  when  through  our 
neglect  or  carelessness,  or  inconsistency  or 
bad  example,  we  lose  hold  of  them — the  child 
committed  to  the  parent's  care,  the  soul  com- 
mitted to  the  priest's  guidance  and  pastoral 
ministrations,  the  pupil  to  the  teacher,  the 
god-child  to  the  sponsor — and  we  have  for- 
gotten them,  or  been  careless,  self-pleasing, 
neglectful.  **  Where  is  the  flock  I  committed 
to  thee? " 

Think  of  Joseph's  remorse,  and  of  our  own 
self-accusation;  and  learn  the  lesson  of  real 
carefulness,  of  earnest  fidelity  in  the  dis- 
charge of  any  such  trust.  Pray  that  you 
may  never,  by  carelessness  or  bad  example, 
put  a  stumbling-block  in  the  way  of  a  soul 
for  whom  Christ  died. 

Think  of  our  Lord's  words  in  that  great 
High-Priestly  prayer  to  His  Father  in  which 
He  reviews  His  life  and  ministry.    **I  have 


THE  HOLYXHILD  IN  THE  TEMPLE.       159 

glorified  Thee  on  the  earth."*  How?  By- 
success  ?  It  was,  to  all  appearances,  a  ghast- 
ly failure !  No ;  but  because  * '  I  have  fin- 
ished the  work  which  Thou  gavest  me  to 
do.**  Never  mind  success  or  failure;  out- 
ward success  may  be  real  spiritual  failure; 
and  outward  failure,  if  we  have  been  true 
and  faithful,  is  not  failure  in  the  sight  of 
God.  **  I  have  manifested  Thy  Name  unto 
the  men  whom  Thou  gavest  Me  out  of  the 
world;  Thine  they  were  and  Thou  gavest 
them  Me  " — those  few — that  little  handful ! 
**  Of  them  have  I  lost  none." 

And  those  people  He  has  given  Me ;  those 
few  placed  under  my  influence — can  I  say 
**  of  them  whom  Thou  gavest  me  have  I  lost 
none,  but  the  son  of  perdition  ?  "f  There  was 
that  limit  to  the  success  of  Jesus  Christ.  He 
could  not.  He  would  not  force  Judas.  He 
will  woo,  and  attract,  and  allure,  but  not 
compel.  And  there  is  that  limit  to  our  in- 
fluence; we  cannot  force  any  against  their 
will. 

But  let  us  live  so  as  to  be  able  to  echo  our 
*  St.  John  xvii.  4.  f  St.  John  xvii.  12. 


i6o  THE  VIRGIN  MOTHER. 

Lord's  words,  **  Of  them  whom  Thou  gavest 
Me  have  I  lost  none" — by  carelessness,  by 
want  of  energy,  or  by  bad  example. 

And  let  us  learn  the  same  lesson  as  regards 
^  our  own  life.  We  have  failed.  It  has  been 
our  own  fault;  we  see  it.  Our  life  has 
grown  dull,  our  faith  is  less  bright,  our  love 
less  active,  and  our  hope  has  become  clouded 
over.  We  have  withdrawn  from  Him;  we 
have  not  been  careful  to  obey  His  inspira- 
tions. **  I  looked  for  my  beloved,  but  my 
beloved  had  withdrawn  himself  and  was 
gone  ...  I  sought  him  but  I  could  not  find 
him;  I  called,  but  he  gave  me  no  answer."* 
I  am  punished  for  my  own  faithlessness. 
Then,  **I  found  Him.  .  .  I  held  Him  and 
would  not  let  Him  go."t  I  will  be  more 
careful,  more  faithful  in  my  spiritual  exer- 
cises, in  my  self-examination,  in  avoiding 
occasions  of  evil;  more  true  in  all  my  du- 
ties. He  has  chastised  me;  I  have  learned 
**  how  evil  and  bitter  a  thing  it  is  to  forsake 
the  Lord."  J  '*  But  He  has  not  dealt  with  me 
after  my  sins,  nor  rewarded  me  according  to 
*  Cant.  V.  6.  f  Cant,  iii.  4.  X  J^^'  "•  *9' 


THE  HOLY  CHILD  IN  THE  TEMPLE.       i6l 

my  iniquities."*  * 'Heaviness  may  endure 
for  a  night,  but  joy  cometh  in  the  morn- 
ing, "f  **Then  shall  ye  call  upon  Me,  .  .  . 
and  I  will  hearken  unto  you.  And  ye  shall 
seek  Me,  and  find  Me,  when  ye  shall 
search  for  Me  with  all  your  heart.  "J 

Let  us  repeat  Psalm  xxx. 

*  Ps.  ciii.  lo.        f  Ps.  xxx.  5.        J  Jer.  xxix.  12, 13. 


NINTH  MEDITATION. 

THE   VIRGIN    MOTHER    AT    THE   MARRIAGE 
FEAST    IN    CANA. 

Let  us  meditate  on  the  example  of  Blessed 
Mary  at  the  Marriage  Feast  of  Cana.  Listen 
to  her  word  of  intercession,  as  she  brings  the 
needs  of  the  company  before  our  Lord,  and 
says,  **they  have  no  wine."*  And  hear  her 
word  of  counsel  to  the  servants,  **  Whatso- 
ever He  saith  unto  you,  do  it."f 

O  Almighty  God,  who  hast  ordained  and 
constituted  the  services  of  men  and  of  angels 
in  a  wonderful  order,  and  hast  incorporated 
us  one  with  another  in  the  mystical  body  of 
Thy  dear  Son;  grant  us,  we  beseech  Thee, 
ever  the  spirit  of  loving  fellowship,  that  we 
may  rejoice  with  them  that  do  rejoice  and 
weep  with  them  that  weep,  that  so,  bearing 

*  St.  Jolin  ii.  3.  t  St.  John  ii.  5. 

162 


THE  MARRIAGE  FEAST  IN  CANA.         163 

one  another's  burdens  here,  we  may  be  fitted 
to  have  our  share  in  the  company  of  Thy 
saints  above,  through  the  same  Jesus  Christ 
our  Lord.     Amen. 
Our  Father. 

Eighteen  more  years  have  passed  since  the 

last  events  recorded  in  the  life  of  the  Blessed 
Virgin  Mary;  and  meanwhile,  so  far  as  the 
Gospel  record  is  concerned,  she  has  been  left 
in  silence,  pondering  over  the  things  she  has 
seen  and  heard.* 

Now  again  we  have  a  mystery  of  mingled 
joy  and  sorrow;  as  if  here  on  earth  we  were 
to  expect  no  unclouded  happiness,  as  if  our 
brightest  joys  were  to  be  dashed  with  streaks 
of  pain.  The  Child  has  developed  into  the 
Boy,  the  Boy  has  become  the  Man,  and  the 
Man  has  entered  on  His  public  work.  We 
turn  from  the  narrative  of  St.  Luke,  which 
tells  of  the  Infancy  of  our  Lord  (gathered 
probably  from  the  Blessed  Mother  herself), 
to  the  story  of  St.  John. 

And,  you  will  remember,  the  marriage 
*St.  Lukeii.  19,  51. 


l64  THE  VIRGIN  MOTHER. 

feast  at  Cana  was  the  occasion  of  St.  John's 
introduction  to  St.  Mary,  who  from  the  Cross 
was  made  his  sacred  charge. 

Think  what  the  intercourse  between  that 
Mother  and  her  Son  must  have  been  during 
those  years  at  Nazareth.  How  He  had 
grown  up  in  her  presence,  and  she  had  ad- 
vanced in  the  spiritual  life  under  His  eye! 
We  see  them  now  together  at  the  marriage 
feast. 

I.  Consider  the  example  which  the  Blessed 
Mother  gives  us  of  sympathy  with  both  the  joys 
and  the  sorrows  of  others.  She  was  fitted 
for  this  by  her  own  experience.  Her  own 
deeper  experience  did  not  crowd  out  the 
thought  of  others;  she  had  learned  to  feel 
for  others  because  she  had  felt  so  much  her- 
self. Think  of  Mary's  presence  at  the  mar- 
riage feast  as  the  expression  of  her  loving 
interest  in  other's  joys.  She  can  enter  into 
their  joys,  although  she  has  put  aside  all 
ordinary  wedding  joys  for  herself.  Perhaps 
the  bride  was  some  friend — her  sister,  or  her 
cousin,  Mary  the  wife  of  Cleophas?    It  mat- 


THE  MARRIAGE  FEAST  IN  CANA.         165 

ters  not ;  she  is  invited,  she  goes.  She  does 
not  say,  *'A11  this  is  too  earthly,  too  low 
for  me!"  She  accepts  the  invitation  and 
goes  to  the  wedding-feast.  She  takes  an 
interest  in  it,  she  adds  to  their  innocent  joy, 
and  cares  for  their  distress  when  the  supply 
of  wine  becomes  exhausted. 

Ah!  think  of  this;  as  we  become  more 
spiritual,  let  us  take  care  not  to  become  awk- 
ward, odd  or  unnatural.  We  do  such  harm 
to  religion  in  this  way!  If,  in  our  family, 
or  in  society,  or  in  our  work,  or  with  our 
pupils,  others  cannot  look  to  us  for  sympathy, 
then  they  are  repelled  from  the  religion  we 
profess.  Surely,  the  religion  of  Jesus  Christ 
should  make  us  more  truly  men  and  women ! 
We  may  have  to  renounce  something  that  is 
less  good  for  something  that  is  better,  but 
don't  let  us  try  to  impose  this  sacrifice  upon 
others.  Don't  say,  "You  must  give  up 
going  to  the  theatre  because  I  find  it  better 
not  to  go."  Don't  be  strait-laced  with  your 
pupils  or  your  scholars;  be  large-hearted. 
Don't  be  above  sympathizing  with  their 
interests.     You  may  have  more  refinement, 


1 66  THE  VIRGIN  MOTHER. 

culture,  and  higher  interests  than  they  have ; 
but  these  are  things  that  interest  them. 
Keep  them  from  harm,  but  don't  frown  on 
what  is  harmless,  or  else  they  will  say,  **  We 
will  throw  off  all  religion !  " 

There  is  a  grand  saying  which  I  have 
never  been  able  to  trace  beyond  a  sermon  of 
Dr.  Liddon's  :  *'The  real  Christian  should 
have  a  heart  of  steel  towards  self,  a  heart  of 
fire  towards  God,  and  a  heart  of  flesh  towards 
his  neighbor."  All  these  should  go  together. 
Sometimes  we  forget  this  and  reverse  their 
order,  especially  in  the  earlier  stages  of 
spiritual  development.  We  forget  the  heart 
of  flesh,  and  because  we  are  strict  with  our- 
selves, we  become  hard  with  others.  Or 
maybe  there  is  the  heart  of  steel  towards  our 
neighbor,  and  no  heart  of  fire  towards  God, 
and  a  heart  of  very  tender  flesh  towards  our- 
selves and  our  own  indulgences.  No,  no ;  if 
we  are  really  strict  with  ourselves,  we  shall 
have  the  heart  of  flesh  for  others;  just  be- 
cause we  know  how  difficult  it  is  to  keep 
straight  ourselves,  we  shall  be  ready  to  con- 
done with   others;  and  we  shall  be  able  to 


THE  MARRIAGE  FEAST  IN  CAN  A.         167 

sympathize  with  others  because  we  have 
learnt  by  experience  our  own  frailties. 

Do  not  with  your  brothers  or  with  friends, 
be  hard  and  repellent ;  let  your  religion  make 
you  more  considerate,  more  loving  and 
attractive^  more  able  to  think  of  and  enter 
into  the  pleasures  and  interests  of  others. 

Think  of  Mary,  the  mother  of  the  Eternal 
Son,  at  the  marriage  feast,  bringing  joy  and 
brightness,  shedding  an  atmosphere  of  sweet- 
ness and  purity  all  around  her. 

Think  of  her  sympathy  with  the  distress  of 
those  who  have  bidden  her  to  the  Feast. 
She  recognizes  their  need.  The  scanty 
household  store,  which  was  all  that  their 
humble  circumstances  could  afford,  has  been 
exhausted,  possibly  by  the  unexpected  ar- 
rival of  Jesus  and  His  disciples.  With  a  true 
woman's  instinct  she  sees  their  embarrass- 
ment and  enters  into  their  distress.  She 
does  not  say,  *  *  Let  them  feel  their  earthly 
need;  it  will  make  them  appreciate  the 
heavenly  better ! "  She  goes  to  her  Son, 
who  also  sees  the  need,  and,  what  is  more, 
relieves  it. 


i68  THE  VIRGIN  MOTHER. 

Do  not  smile  at  what  people  call  **  mere 
philanthropy."  Try  to  raise  it  to  something 
better.  Do  not  hold  in  contempt  what  is 
done  for  others,  because  it  is  not  always 
done  in  the  best  way.  It  may,  perhaps,  help 
them  to  embrace  religion  and  fit  them  to 
receive  spiritual  truths.  How  can  you  ex- 
pect the  starving  and  naked  to  rise  up  to  the 
desire  for  heavenly  things?  **That  is  not 
first  which  is  spiritual,"  says  St.  Paul,  **but 
that  which  is  natural."*  Our  Lord  Him- 
self when  teaching  by  parables  begins  with 
things  earthly — with  what  is  close  at  hand ; 
and  then  He  says  that  all  these  things  have 
a  meaning  deeper  and  higher.  He  takes  the 
earthly  and  says,  *'  Now  learn  from  that — 
from  the  needs  of  your  body — the  need  that 
your  souls  have  of  refreshing ! "  You  learn 
from  your  duty  to  your  earthly  parent  your 
duty  to  your  Heavenly  Father.  What  is  the 
child's  first  idea  of  God,  but  of  some  one 
higher,  wiser  and  better  than  the  wisest, 
greatest,  best  person  it  knows — its  parent! 
Think  of  that.     A  child  will   gain  its  first 

*  I  Cor.  XV.  46. 


THE  MARRIAGE  FEAST  IN  CANA.         169 

idea  of  God  from  its  earthly  parent,  who 
either  demands  its  obedience  as  a  tyrant — 
**defy  me  if  you  dare!" — or  who  lovingly 
trains  it  and  supplies  its  needs  in  a  better 
way  than  it  can  ask,  and  who  guards  it  and 
leads  it  on  to  better  things. 

So  think  of  Mary,  seeing  the  temporal 
need  of  her  friends,  and  setting  herself  to 
relieve  their  anxieties. 

Are  we  stirred  by  the  sense  of  others' 
need  ?  Think  of  that  word  of  hers— **  They 
have  no  wine !  "  Oh,  how  it  should  echo  from 
our  heart  and  lips  in  prayer !  There  is  not 
only  the  absolute  poverty  of  life,  but  the 
joylessness  of  so  many;  not  only  of  those 
whom  we  ordinarily  speak  of  as  **the  miser- 
able classes,"  but  the  joylessness  of  so  many 
in  the  world — of  the  rich  and  the  worldly. 
They  have  money,  and  they  don't  know  how 
to  spend  it ;  they  have  possessions  and  plea- 
sures, and  they  don't  know  how  to  use  them; 
they  have  no  real  happiness  in  their  lives — 
**  they  have  no  wine!  "  Oh,  how  we  should 
try  to  win  them  by  love,  to  bring  their  needs 
before   our  Lord,  to  try  in  every  way  we 


170  THE  VIRGIN  MOTHER. 

can,  by  our  influence,  our  example,  our 
words  of  exhortation,  to  bring  joy  into 
others'  lives.  And  there  are  those  who  are 
less  fortunate  than  ourselves.  How  we 
should  use  all  the  gifts  that  have  been  be- 
stowed upon  us  for  the  common  good. 
Your  educational  advantages,  your  refine- 
ment, your  culture,  your  knowledge  of  liter- 
ature, your  musical  talents,  your  art — what 
are  they  for  ?  Simply  to  make  money  by  ? 
God  forbid!  To  distinguish  you  from 
others  ?  No  gift  was  ever  bestowed  in  order 
that  the  one  to  whom  it  was  given  might 
be  separated  from  others  by  that  gift !  No ; 
it  is  to  be  a  link  to  bind  us  together.  **I 
can  do  something  that  my  brother  cannot, 
therefore  he  has  a  claim  on  me,  and  I  will 
stand  by  him."  We  are  made  to  be  neces- 
sary to  one  another;  and  for  all  the  gifts  we 
have,  as  trustees  for  the  common  good,  we 
are  responsible  not  only  to  Him  who  has 
given  them,  but  to  our  companions  and  our 
fellow-men  also  for  whom  He  has  given 
them. 

Think.     Are    we    using    the    advantages 


THE  MARRIAGE  FEAST  IN  CANA.         171 

that   God   has   given   us   in   trust,    for   our 
brethren — our  scholars  ? 

Mary  interceded.  Ah!  she  does  so  now, 
for  those  who  have  no  joy,  no  brightness  in 
their  lives;  for  those  who  don't  know  Him. 
And  we  must  intercede  along  with  her.  If 
we  join  in  her  song  of  praise  in  the  Magnifi- 
cat^ we  must  unite  in  her  intercessions  also, 
and  bring  the  needs  of  others  before  our 
Lord ;  and  as  we  bring  them,  do  all  we  can 
to  supply  them.  **Give  us  this  day  our 
daily  bread,"  not,  **  Give  me  mine!''  The 
Lord*s  Prayer  is  not  said  in  the  singular, 
but  in  the  plural.  *''■  Meum''  and  ^^ tuum" 
are  not  Christian  words;  ^^ Pater  noster'*  is 
the  Christian  prayer  and  the  law  of  Christian 
life  and  conduct.  What  we  value  for  our- 
selves we  must  seek  to  spread  to  others; 
and  what  we  shrink  from  ourselves — lower- 
ing surroundings,  a  tainted  atmosphere — 
what  we  shrink  to  think  of  those  nearest  and 
dearest  to  us  being  exposed  to — let  us  do  all 
we  can  to  remove  from  others.  *'  Lead  tis 
not  into  temptation.  Deliver  tcs  from  evil." 
Do  what  you  can  to  sweeten  the  mental  and 


172  THE  VIRGIN  MOTHER. 

moral  atmosphere  that  surrounds  you,  my 
sisters.  All  can  bring  others'  needs  before 
our  Blessed  Lord;  and  then,  like  Mary, 
leave  Him  to  supply  them  as  He  sees 
best. 

Then  let  us  go  on  to  Mary's  word  of  ex- 
hortation. She  not  only  prays,  she  speaks  to 
the  servants  her  one  recorded  word  of  exhor- 
tation— **  Whatsoever  He  saith  unto  you,  do 
it."  See  what  should  be  the  word  of  a 
teacher.  Not,  as  we  saw  before,  trying  to 
impress  yourself  on  others,  but  to  render 
them  plastic  to  His  inspirations,  in  order  that 
Christ  may  impress  Himself  upon  them  by 
His  Word,  by  His  Spirit,  in  their  conscience. 
**  Whatsoever  He  saith  unto  you,  do  it." 
Whenever  we  have  the  opportunity,  let  us 
give  the  word  of  exhortation  and  advice. 
Do  not  let  us  be  overcome  by  shyness  or 
false  shame,  but  speak  the  word  in  season. 
Like  the  Blessed  Mother,  point  to  Him; 
only,  like  Blessed  Mary  let  the  word  of  coun- 
sel be  the  echo  of  your  own  conduct. 
**  Whatsoever  He  saith  unto  you" — even 
though  it  be  to  fill  the  pots  with  water  when 


THE  MARRIAGE  FEAST  IN  CANA.         173 

it  is  wine  that  is  wanted — *'do  it."  She 
could  say  that  because  she  had  done  it  her- 
self. Her  word  of  exhortation  is  the  echo  of 
her  own  word  of  self-surrender  in  response 
to  the  Angelic  message,  giving  herself  up  in 
simple  faith,  **  Behold  the  handmaid  of  the 
Lord;  be  it  unto  me  according  to  thy 
word."  *  *'  How  shall  I  be  carried  through  ? 
How  shall  this  word  be  accomplished  ? 
How  shall  I  be  protected  ?" — She  did  not 
know,  nor  did  she  very  much  care.  God 
had  spoken;  He  would  be  true  to  His  word. 
And  *  *  all  things  spoken  by  the  Angel  con- 
cerning the  Virgin  Mary  were  accom- 
plished." Out  of  her  own  experience  she 
could  give  the  word  of  counsel,  *  *  Whatsoever 
He  saith  unto y on ^  do  it.'' 

Ah  !  if  only  our  words  could  be  seen  to  be 
the  outcome  of  our  own  experience,  then 
they  would  have  real  force.  But  if  we  are 
only  seeing  very  plainly  what  others  ought 
to  do,  while  they  see  very  plainly  that  we  are 
not  doing  what  we  ought  to  do,  then  we  had 
better  not  speak  at  all.  Mary  is  calling 
*St.  Lukei.  38. 


174  THE  VIRGIN  MOTHER. 

others  to  that  saintly  life  in  which  she  seeks 
to  abide. 

So  consider  the  example  of  Mary's  sympa- 
thy at  the  marriage  feast,  seeing  their  need, 
and  setting  herself  to  relieve  it  by  her  inter- 
cession and  her  counsel. 

II.  Consider  Marfs  sorrow  and  discipline 
at  Cana,  The  scene  is  one  of  changed  rela- 
tionships. It  is  the  first  time  that  Mother 
and  Son  have  met  since  He  left  her  at  Naza- 
reth to  enter  upon  His  ministerial  life.  Oh ! 
think  of  what  her  sorrow  was  as  He  told 
her  He  must  go;  that  those  days  of  loving 
intercourse  were  over,  that  He  is  going  to 
leave  Nazareth,  to  leave  her;  that  the  Father's 
business  required  it. 

Then  followed  the  Baptism,  the  solemn 
inauguration  to  His  Ministry  by  the  fore- 
runner. Then  came  the  forty  days'  fast, 
and  His  fierce  struggle  with  the  Evil  One. 
Then  the  return  from  the  wilderness,  when 
John  had  pointed  Him  out  to  his  disciples  as 
the  new  Teacher: — ''Behold  the  Lamb  of 
God,  which   taketh   away    the    sins  of  the 


THE  MARRIAGE  FEAST  IN  CANA.         175 

world !  "  *  and  handed  over  to  Him  some  of 
hij  own  pupils  whom  he  had  been  training 
for  the  Christ — Peter  and  Andrew,  James  and 
John,  Philip  and  Nathaniel — these  had  been 
called  to  be  the  Lord's  disciples. 

And  now  the  Mother  and  Son  meet  again. 
Jesus  goes  with  those  disciples  to  Cana.  She 
sees  a  change  in  Him.  His  bodily  frame  is 
wasted  with  His  forty  days'  fast;  His  face 
is  lined  with  the  marks  of  His  terrific  struggle 
with  the  Evil  One ;  she  has  a  foreboding  of 
what  is  to  follow.  They  are  never  again  to 
be  together  as  they  were  before.  He  has 
new  interests  now ;  His  disciples  are  His  first 
thought;  they  are  His  intimate  companions; 
they  have  taken  her  place ! 

Ah !  think  of  the  sacrifices  we  are  called  to 
make  as  our  friends  go  from  us,  or  as  we  are 
called  to  leave  them.  I  sometimes  think  that 
those  who  are  left  behind  make  quite  as 
great  a  sacrifice  as  those  who  go;  as  the 
priest,  the  missionary,  the  religious,  or  any 
who  are  called  to  live  a  life  of  separation; 
and,  if  so,   if    they  share    in  the  sacrifice, 

*  St.  John  i.  29. 


176  THE  VIRGIN  MOTHER. 

then,  be  sure,  they  share  in  the  blessing  too. 
When  that  friend  or  that  pupil  is  called  to 
something  beyond  you — to  something  to 
which  you  are  not  called,  ah !  then  think  of 
the  sacrifice  that  Jesus  made,  and  that  Mary 
made  when  she  sent  forth  her  Son. 

Then,  think  of  the  check  to  her  natural 
feelings.  She  sees  Him  with  the  first-fruits 
of  His  disciples,  and  she  rejoices  that  He  has 
such  enthusiastic  friends;  the  mother's  heart 
was  stirred,  of  course, — for  she  was  a  true 
woman.  They  tell  her  about  His  baptism, 
of  which  John  had  told  them ;  of  the  Spirit 
descending  like  a  dove  and  resting  upon 
Him ;  and  of  the  Father's  voice  proclaiming, 
"  This  is  My  beloved  Son."  *  They  tell  her, 
too,  of  the  Baptist's  words,  **  Behold  the 
Lamb  of  God,  which  taketh  away  the  sins  of 
the  world," — how  he  had  been  preparing  the 
way  for  the  Messianic  King,  and  had  pointed 
Jesus  out  as  the  Expected  One.  Her  heart 
is  on  fire !  Do  not  think  me  disrespectful — 
she  has  a  natural  ambition  (St.  Chrysostom 
says  so);  she  would  have  her  Son  to  be  a 
*  St.  Matt.  iii. 


THE  MARRIAGE  FEAST  IN  CANA.         177 

King,  and  she  would  share  His  throne! 
And  now  she  would  have  Him  work  a  mira- 
cle. This  gives  the  key  to  His  answer. 
There  is  nothing  disrespectful,  nothing 
rough,  in  the  reply  of  Jesus:  ''  Woman,"  or 
as  we  might  say,  **  Lady  "  [the  word  is  con- 
stantly so  rendered  in  the  Greek  plays] 
"what  have  I  to  do  with  thee  ?"  But  there 
is  an  insistance  upon  a  changed  relationship — 
* '  What  is  there  in  common  between  you  and 
Me  in  this  matter  ?  In  my  private  life  I  was 
subject  to  you,  as  a  son  to  his  mother;  now 
I  have  entered  upon  My  public  ministry;  I 
am  about  My  Father's  business;  and  that 
must  be  done,  not  in  accordance  with  any 
partial  love,  or  dictates  of  natural  affection." 
He  severs  Himself  from  her  jurisdiction  by 
this  word.  And  how  lovingly  she  takes  it ! 
She  turns  to  the  servants  and  refers  all  to 
Him.  She  points  to  Him,  not  to  herself: 
"  Whatsoever  He  saith  unto  you,  do  it !  " 

Ah!  and  how  often  has  our  Lord  dealt 
thus  with  us.  He  sends  us  some  check; — 
our  heart  is  set  on  the  accomplishment 
of  some   plan,   some    scheme   which  prom- 


178  THE  VIRGIN  MOTHER. 

ises  success;  not  for  ourselves  only,  but 
for  others — and  God  sends  us  a  check. 
We  cannot,  as  we  look  back  upon  it,  deny- 
that  there  was  a  good  deal  of  self-love  mixed 
up  in  it;  it  was  our  plan,  and  we  were  going 
to  have  a  share  in  it;  it  was  going  to  be  a 
credit  to  us !  And  our  Lord  makes  that  plan 
fail;  some  one  else  carries  it  out.  Ah!  we 
must  be  purged  from  all  self-love.  So  long 
as  God's  will  is  done  and  souls  are  helped, 
what  matter  whether  the  work  be  done  by 
us  or  by  others,  in  our  fashion  or  in  an- 
other; whether  we  gain  credit  and  success, 
or  discredit  and  disappointment  ?  No  mat- 
ter, so  long  as  the  work  is  done.  They  have 
the  wine  of  gladness,  and  it  matters  not 
whether  we  hold  the  bottle,  or  the  servants; 
or  whether  the  work  be  done  in  our  lifetime, 
or  by  others  whom  He  will  raise  up.  We 
must  rise  above  all  petty  and  personal  con- 
siderations, and  we  must  expect  our  Lord  to 
send  checks  in  our  life  and  in  our  work. 

III.  Consider  our  Lord's  example  at  the 
Marriage  Feast  of  Cana,   in  His  dealings 


THE  MARRIAGE  FEAST  IN  CANA.  179 

with  His  Blessed  Mother ;   His  perfect  De- 
tachment and  perfect  Impartiality, 

(i.)  His  Detachment.  He  will  not  antici- 
pate the  hour  which  the  Father  has  fixed: 
**Mine  hour  is  not  yet  come."*  He  will 
not  be  moved  by  any  mere  partial  love. 
**Who  is  My  Mother,  and  who  are  My  breth- 
ren ?  "  f  He  will  not  respond  to  any  merely 
natural  claim.  So  must  we  make  all  natural 
claims  subordinate  to  the  heavenly;  yet  we 
must  love  all  very,  very  tenderly.  Do  not 
think  that  love  is  lessened  because  it  is  con- 
trolled. No,  no;  it  is  strengthened,  because 
all  that  makes  it  weak  and  vacillating  is 
purged  away.  Strong  love  is  pure.  Love 
Him  above  all,  and  all  in  Him.  ''Whom 
have  I  in  heaven  but  Thee  ?  and  there  is  none 
upon  earth  that  I  desire  in  comparison  of 
Thee.  "I  All  others,  however  tenderly  I 
may  love  them,  are  as  nothing  in  comparison 
of  Thee !  So  in  all  matters  of  life  learn  to 
put  aside  preference^  while  you  stand  fast  by 
principle.  We  must  distinguish  our  duty 
from  our  pleasure.  It  is  very  easy  to  call 
*  St.  John  ii.  4.        f  St.  Matt.  xii.  48-50.        %  Ps.  Ixxiii.  24. 


i8o  THE  VIRGIN  MOTHER. 

preference  principle ;  but  as  we  are  ready  to 
sacrifice  our  preferences,  we  can  stand  the 
more  firmly  by  principle;  and  others  will 
then  learn  to  respect  the  principle  to  which 
we  feel  bound  to  adhere. 

(ii.)  Our  Lord's  Impartiality.  He  spares 
not  His  Mother,  because  she  is  so  dear  to 
Him.  No;  heroic  souls  are  dealt  with  in 
heroic  fashion.  Because  she  is  so  dear  to 
Him  He  cannot  bear  that  there  should  be  in 
her  the  slightest  flaw  or  imperfection;  she 
must  be  wholly  conformed  to  the  Divine 
will. 

So  if  God  disciplines  us,  it  is  because  He 
loves  us.  ''Whom  the  Lord  loveth  He 
chasteneth,  and  scourgeth  every  son  whom 
He  receive th."  *  It  is  because  He  loves  our 
best  and  highest  interests.  It  is  because  He 
is  so  faithful  in  His  friendship  that  He  must 
warn  us  against  the  things  that  mar  our 
highest  perfection.  Just  so  did  our  Lord 
deal  with  His  disciples;  that  was  why  He  was 
so  severe  with  the  chosen  three  whom  He 
had  admitted  into  the  inner  circle  of  His 
*  Heb.  xii.  6. 


THE  MARRIAGE  FEAST  IN  CANA.         i8i 

friendship,  and  allowed  to  be  with  Him  on 
certain  special  occasions ;  for  instance,  at  the 
raising  to  life  again  of  Jairus'  daughter, 
at  the  Transfiguration,  and  at  the  Agony 
in  the  Garden.  They  were  specially  hon- 
oured, specially  loved,  and  specially  disci- 
plined. How  stern  our  Lord  was  with  St. 
Peter!  After  his  great  confession,  **Thou 
art  the  Christ,  the  Son  of  the  Living  God ! " 
when  he  had  drawn  forth  from  the  Lord  an 
expression  of  joy — ''Blessed  art  thou,  Simon 
Barjona! — My  work  has  not  been  in  vain; 
thou  hast  learnt  the  truth  I  have  been  trying 
to  teach  My  disciples,  and  hast  won  thy  place, 
to  be  first  among  My  Apostles  and  a  founda- 
tion-stone of  My  Church !  " — a  little  while 
after,  when  Jesus  foretells  His  Passion  and 
St.  Peter  would  dissuade  Him  from  it,  our 
Lord  turns  to  him  with  these  words,  *'Get 
thee  behind  Me,  Satan,  thou  art  an  offence 
unto  Me;  for  thou  savourest  not  the  things 
that  be  of  God,  but  those  that  be  of  men."* 
He  does  not  say,  **  Peter  has  said  so  many 
good  things,  I  must  pass  this  by !  "     Not  so. 

*  St.  Matt  xvi.  13-24, 


l82  THE  VIRGIN  MOTHER. 

Because  Peter  had  risen  to  such  a  height,  he 
cannot  be  allowed  to  sink  down  to  a  low 
level.  Because  he  had  risen  to  the  appre- 
hension of  spiritual  things,  he  cannot  be 
allowed  to  speak  the  things  of  earth. 

And  so  was  it  with  the  fiery  spirit  of 
James  and  John ;  it  must  be  regulated.  They 
would  call  down  fire  from  heaven  on  the 
Samaritans  who  would  not  receive  their 
Master;*  He  sternly  rebukes  them,  **Ye 
know  not  what  manner  of  spirit  ye  are  of !  " 
"None  of  your  Old  Testament  spirit  of 
vengeance  here !  I  want  not  the  spirit  of 
Elijah!  Rise  up  to  Mj^  spirit.  The  Son 
of  Man  is  come  not  to  destroy  men's  lives, 
but  to  save  them.  See  the  manner  of  My 
victory,  conquering  through  love,  winning 
through  meekness,  through  self-sacrifice." 
Yes,  His  disciples  must  be  disciplined  and 
purged.  His  special  friends  must  be  treated 
with  special  discipline. 

Let  us  expect  our  Lord  to  deal  thus  with 
us,  as  a  faithful  friend,  and  let  us  submit 
ourselves  to  His  loving  severity.  His  prudent 

*  St.  Luke  ix.  54. 


THE  MARRIAGE  FEAST  IN  CANA.         183 

training,  even  though  He  use  the  surgeon's 
knife.  **Tiy  me,  O  God,  and  seek  the 
ground  of  my  heart ;  prove  me  and  examine 
my  thoughts."* 

And  we  will  try  to  imitate  His  faithful- 
ness, His  impartiality  in  dealing  with  friends. 
We  are  not  true  to  our  friends  if  we  are 
afraid  of  giving  them  pain.  There  are  times 
when  we  ought  to  risk  giving  pain,  and  not 
to  shrink  from  it.  We  must  be  ready  to  give 
pain  if  we  love  with  real  love ;  we  must  love 
so  truly  as  to  be  willing  even  to  be  suspected 
at  the  moment  of  not  loving.  We  must  be 
faithful  in  our  friendships,  not  letting  our- 
selves be  dragged  down  by  our  companions 
from  the  high  standard  to  which  God  is  call- 
ing us.  In  some  instances  we  have  seen,  on 
our  knees,  quite  plainly  how  we  ought  to 
behave  under  trying  circumstances;  for  in- 
stance, in  some  misunderstanding,  or  when 
things  are  going  wrong;  in  church  matters 
perhaps,  or  in  our  own  family;  we  see  it  all 
and  realize  how  we  ought  to  act,  regarding  it 
as  an  opportunity  of  showing  meekness  and 

*  Ps.  cxxxix.  23. 


i84  THE  VIRGIN  MOTHER. 

patience,  of  overcoming  evil  with  good.  And 
then  some  one  suggests  a  different  line,  and 
we  allow  the  suggestion  to  stir  up  all  our 
bad  feelings — ''You  can't  let  that  pass!  You 
can't  allow  yourself  to  be  treated  like  that! — 
what  will  come  next  ? "  And  so  we  retal- 
iate, instead  of  being  true  to  our  conviction. 
Instead  of  insisting,  as  Jesus  did,  that  His 
friend  should  rise  up  to  His  standard,  we 
sink  down  to  the  lower  level  suggested  by  a 
friend,  and  so  fail  in  loyalty  to  our  God,  and 
also  to  our  friend !  This  was  our  opportunity 
for  bearing  witness  to  what  God  had  shown 
to  us. 

So  consider  our  Lord's  example  of  faith- 
fulness, and  impartiality,  and  detachment. 

Let  us  learn  with  Blessed  Mary  to  sympa- 
thize with  others'  sorrows  and  with  others 
joys,  and  to  set  ourselves  with  real  active 
sympathy  and  earnest  zeal  to  supply  their 
needs.  Let  us  seek  like  her  to  subject  our- 
selves to  our  Lord's  loving  training  and 
discipline;  and  let  us  strive  to  be  true  and 
faithful  to  all  because   we  love   Him,    and 


THE  MARRIAGE  FEAST  IN  CANA.  185 

because  we  love  them  truly  and  really,  in 
and  for  God. 

Let  us  repeat  Psalm  cxli. 


TENTH  MEDITATION. 

THE    VIRGIN    MOTHER    AT    THE    CROSS. 

Let  us  meditate  on  the  Blessed  Mother 
standing  by  the  Cross  of  our  Lord  Jesus 
Christ. 

Behold  her  as  beheld  by  Jesus ;  and  listen 
to  His  word  as  He  commends  His  Mother 
to  the  loving  care  of  St.  John,  the  beloved 
disciple,  and  says,  *'  Woman,  behold  thy 
son!"  and  to  St.  John,  **  Behold  thy 
mother ! "  * 

O'  Lord  Jesus  Christ,  King  of  Saints,  Who 
dost  bind  us  in  a  blessed  fellowship  one  with 
another  as  Thy  disciples  and  as  members  of 
Thy  mystical  Body,  grant  us,  we  pray  Thee, 
that  loving  Thee  with  a  pure  love,  we  may 
love  all  others  whom  Thou  dost  love,  in 
Thee  and  for  Thee.  Grant  us  to  use  all  the 
gifts  Thou  hast  bestowed  upon  us,  in  nature 

*St.  John  xix.  26,  27. 

186 


AT  THE  CROSS.  187 


and  in  grace,  for  the  good  of  the  brethren, 
that   so    we    may   be    numbered  with   Thy 
Saints,  both  now  and  evermore.     Amen. 
Our  Father. 

And  now  the  Blessed  Mother's  cup  of  sor- 
row is  full.  We  gaze  on  the  climax  of  her 
woe,  but  only  to  remember  that  that  depth 
of  woe  shall  lead^to  a  higher,  more  glorious 
joy  than  any  she  had  yet  experienced.  From 
the  Joyful  Mysteries  we  pass  on  to  the  Sor- 
rowful ;  and  the  Sorrowful  Mysteries  are,  in 
their  turn,  to  give  place  to  the  Glorious  and 
Triumphant  Mysteries. 

But  as  she  now  stands  at  the  foot  of  the 
Cross,  all  else  is  swallowed  up  in  the  contem- 
plation of  that  fearful  sight.  We  sing  of  her 
as  standing  by  the  Cross  of  her  Son,  but  it  is 
much  too  solemn  and  awful  a  thought  for  mere 
sentiment.  We  behold  an  illustration  of  the 
law  of  God's  dealing  with  all  His  Saints,  with 
all  whom  He  calls  near  to  Himself;  and  those 
who  have  a  special  share  in  His  Son's  exal- 
tation must  have  a  peculiar  share  in  His  suf- 
fering.    It  is  the  warning  of  the  Old  Testa- 


1 88  THE  VIRGIN  MOTHER. 

ment;  **My  son,  if  thou  come  to  serve  the 
Lord,  prepare  thy  soul  for  temptation."* 
And  the  warning  of  the  Old  Testament  is 
taken  up  and  transfigured  in  the  Apostolic 
hymn  of  the  New  Testament,  '*if  we  suffer 
with  Him  we  shall  reign  with  Him."t  It  is 
the  experience  of  His  Saints.  As  James  and 
John  came  and  asked  for  high  places  in  His 
Kingdom,  He  puts  to  them  the  test,  **  Are  ye 
able  to  drink  of  the  cup  that  I  shall  drink 
of?"t  As  St.  Bernard  says,  **What  a 
shame  " — and  we  might  add,  what  an  impossi- 
l3ility — '*tobe  the  soft  and  luxurious  mem- 
ber of  a  Head  that  was  crowned  with 
thorns !  "  So  does  Christ  bring  to  the  Cross 
of  suffering  her  whom  He  loved  with  a 
peculiar  love. 

By  the  Cross,  her  station  keeping, 
Stands  the  Mother  mournful  weeping, 

Where  He  hangs,  the  dying  Lord. 
For  her  soul,  of  joy  bereaved, 
Bowed  with  anguish,  deeply  grieved, 

Feels  the  sharp  and  piercing  sword. 

Ah !  think  of  her  sorrow !  *  *  For  a  mother  to 
be  present  at  the  death  of  a  child,  an  only 
*  Eccles.  ii.  I.        i  2  Tim.  ii.;i2.        J  St.  Matt.  xx.  22. 


AT  THE  CROSS.  189 


son,  and  that  mother  a  widow,  is  an  affecting 
thought  at  any  time,  a  grief  too  deep  and 
mysterious  for  any  perhaps  quite  to  under- 
stand but  those  who  have  felt  it.  But  for 
that  Mother  of  that  Son  to  stand  by  and  see 
Him  condemned  to  death  as  a  malefactor, 
crucified  between  robbers,  reviled  and  in- 
sulted, to  hear  Him  cry,  *  My  God,  My  God, 
why  hast  Thou  forsaken  Me  ? '  *  and  to  be 
unable  to  minister  to  Him,  this  surely  is  a 
secret  and  mystery  of  angfuish  as  much  above 
what  ordinary  mothers  can  understand  as 
their  grief  is  more  than  can  be  comprehended 
by  any  but  mothers."!  Hagar  sat  a  good 
way  off  and  cried,  *'  Let  me  not  see  the  child 
die !  "  J  But  Mary  stands  by  the  Cross  and 
sees  the  death  of  her  Son.  She  does  not 
shriek,  or  faint,  or  fall  down;  she  stands 
there  in  a  majesty  of  sorrow,  **  perplexed,  but 
not  in  despair;  cast  down,  but  not  de- 
stroyed." §     She  shares  her  Son's  lot. 

I.  Consider  her  standing  by  the  Cross  as  we 

*  St.  Matt,  xxvii.  46.  f  Isaac  Williams. 

X  Gen.  xxi.  16.  I  2  Cor.  iv.  8,  9. 


I90  THE  VIRGIN  MOTHER. 

have  seen  her  all  through  her  life,  as  the 
representative  of  the  Church,  the  type  and 
figure  of  the  faithful.  Ah !  is  she  my  pat- 
tern, standing  by  the  Cross  ?  The  Cross  is 
set  up  in  my  life,  in  my  family  life — do  I 
bravely  stand  by  it  ?  In  some  bereavement, 
or  in  a  painful  misunderstanding,  do  I  stand, 
like  the  Blessed  Mother,  overwhelmed, 
maybe,  with  grief  and  shame,  yet  still  look- 
ing up  to  God,  not  in  bitterness,  but  believ- 
ing ?  Or  is  the  Cross  in  our  work  ?  Some 
failure  comes,  or  disappointment,  or  pecu- 
niary anxiety,  do  we  stand  by  that  Cross  ?  Or 
it  is  in  our  own  personal,  individual  life; 
temptations  assail  us,  a  dark  cloud  settles 
down  on  our  soul,  spiritual  difficulties  arise — 
do  we  give  up  then  ?  Or  are  we  found  faith- 
ful ?  Do  we  stand  by  the  Master  ?  Or,  the 
Passion  is  renewed  in  the  Church's  ex- 
perience; there  are  anomalies,  difficulties, 
heresies.  But  troubles  do  not  call  for  fret- 
fulness  and  impatience;  the  Church  is  to 
be  tried,  like  her  Head;  she  is  to  share  her 
Lord's  humiliation.  She  is  to  be  like  her 
Master,    ** unknown"   to   earth,    **yet  well- 


AT  THE  CROSS.  191 


known"  to  Heaven;*  '*  crucified  through 
weakness,  yet  living  by  the  power  of  God."  f 
Am  I  faithful  to  principle,  yet  humble  and 
forbearing,  not  bitter  or  complaining  ?  Am 
I  standing,  like  the  Blessed  Mother,  patient 
by  the  cross,  not  seeking  to  be  rid  of  it  ?  Am 
I  standing  by  her  in  sympathy,  seeing  Him 
suffering  in  the  poor,  the  sinful  and  the 
ignorant — ministering  to  Him  in  them  ? 
**  Inasmuch  as  ye  did  it  unto  one  of  the  least 
of  these  My  brethren,  ye  did  it  unto  Me !  "  J 
Am  I  standing  there  in  readiness  to  bear  His 
lot,  ready  to  share  His  scorn  and  shame  ? 
And  am  I  standing  there  in  worship,  behold- 
ing the  glory  of  the  Cross,  the  moral  beauty 
of  the  sacrifice,  not  in  mere  admiration  or 
idle  sentiment,  but  rendering  the  true  homage 
of  imitation  ? 

Is  not  Mary  learning  a  deeper  lesson  than 
before  ?  Surely,  as  she  stands  by  the  Cross, 
she  is  gaining,  as  all  through  her  life,  a  fur- 
ther revelation  of  her  Son's  character,  His 
dignity.  His  work,  His  kingdom.  The  Old 
Testament   Scriptures — the    Levitical    sacri- 

*  2  Cor.  vi.  9.        f  2  Cor.  xiii.  4.        %  St.  Matt.  xxv.  40. 


192  THE  VIRGIN  MOTHER. 

fices,  the  prophetic  types  of  the  Passion — 
now  she  has  the  key  to  many  things  that  had 
puzzled  her.  Now  she  learns  that  the  suffer- 
ing Messiah  is  to  be  the  triumphant  Messiah ; 
,that  He  is  to  reign  in  meekness,  to  conquer 
through  suffering.  The  Apostles  had  hot 
learned  before  the  true  characteristics  of  His 
kingdom;  they  had  dreamed  of  an  earthly 
kingdom,  and  Mary  had  shared  their 
thoughts;  it  would  have  been  impossible 
for  her  to  be  altogether  free  from  them. 
Now  she  learns  the  truth,  she  learns  in  what 
His  true  dignity  consists;  she  dies  with  Him 
to  every  earthly  hope,  every  mere  natural 
ambition.  The  Cross  was  to  her,  as  to  all 
who  were  to  be  incorporated  into  the  human- 
ity of  her  Son,  the  key  of  heaven,  the  door- 
way to  a  better  life. 

Think.  Are  we  ready,  like  Mary,  to  stand 
by  the  Cross,  in  worship,  in  readiness  to  learn 
its  mysteries,  to  set  ourselves  to  follow  in  our 
Lord's  steps  ? 

II.  Think  of  Mary  by  the  Cross,  recognized 
by  our  Lord  Jesus  Christ, 

**  Now  there  stood  by  the  Cross  of  Jesus  His 


AT  THE  CROSS.  193 


Mother,  and  His  mother's  sister,  Mary  the 
wife  of  Cleophas,  and  Mary  Magdalene. 
When  Jesus  therefore  saw  His  mother, 
and  the  disciple  standing  by,  whom  He 
loved,  He  saith  unto  His  mother,  Woman, 
behold  thy  son !  Then  saith  He^to  the  dis- 
ciple, Behold  thy  mother !  "  * 

He  saw  her  from  the  Cross.  Ah !  think  of 
what  He  saw  as  He  looked  around!  He 
beheld  the  soldiers — rough,  brutal,  ignorant — 
with  their  wine,  their  dice  and  their  spoils. 
He  beheld  the  chief  priests  mocking  in  their 
malice,  exulting  that  at  last  their  plan  had 
succeeded,  they  had  got  rid  of  their  rival. 
He  saw  the  penitent  robber;  He  turned  to 
look  at  him,  to  accept  his  confession,  and  to 
give  him  His  word  of  promise.  He  looked 
for  St.  Peter,  but  St.  Peter  was  not  there. 
He  had  said  he  was  ready  to  go  with  Him  to 
prison  and  to  death,  but  he  had  denied  Him, 
and  now  we  may  suppose  he  was  ashamed  to 
return  and  stand  by  Him.  He  saw  that  little 
band  of  disciples,  mostly  women,  of  all 
classes,  under  the  guardianship  and  patron- 
age of  St.  John.     There  was  Magdalene,  the 

*  St.  John  xix.  25-27. 


194  THE  VIRGIN  MOTHER. 

penitent ;  Salome,  the  matron ;  and  the  Virgin 
Mother. 

Ah!  as  the  Cross  is  continually  reared 
throughout  the  ages  He  looks  to  see  if  those 
whom  He  has  called  to  be  His  disciples  are 
standing  there.  Does  He  see  us  standing,  in 
faithful  love  and  courage,  by  His  Cross  ? 

See  Him  faithful  in  the  fulfilment  of  filial 
duty  to  the  very  end.  He  had  separated 
Himself  from  His  Mother  at  His  Father's 
call.  But  when,  on  entering  upon  His 
Ministry  at  the  Father's  call.  He  subor- 
dinated earthly  ties  to  Divine  obligations. 
He  did  not  cease  to  love;  He  did  not  oblit- 
erate His  earthly  love;  human  love  is  only 
made  more  pure,  more  strong,  more  en- 
during by  subordination  to  Divine  love. 
Therefore  when  there  was  no  conflict  of 
claims,  His  last  thought  was  for  His  Mother, 
as  He  seeks  to  provide  for  her,  and  com- 
mends her  to  the  loving  care  of  the  disciple 
whom  He  could  trust. 

A  Son  that  never  did  amiss. 
That  never  shamed  His  Mother's  kiss, 
Nor  crossed  her  fondest  prayer  : 


AT  THE  CROSS.  195 


E'en  from  the  tree  He  deigned  to  bow 
For  her  His  agonized  brow, 
Her,  His  sole  earthly  care.* 

Who,  O  perfect  filial  heart, 
E'er  did  Thee  a  true  son's  part, 
Endearing,  firm,  serene  ? 

See  in  this  the  consecration  of  all  natural 
ties,  the  re-hallowing  by  the  Cross  of  all 
family  affections  and  kinship.  Have  all  your 
natural  relationships  been  re-hallowed  by  the 
Cross  of  Jesus — re-hallowed  at  the  beginning 
of  a  New  Year  by  the  cradle  of  Mary's  Child, 
by  Him  who  became  a  member,  not  merely 
of  the  human  race,  but  of  a  human  family; 
who  became  your  Brother  to  enable  you  to 
fulfil  all  the  duties  of  your  family  and  social 
life,  with  love,  with  purity,  with  peace  ? 

III.  Consider  the  creation  of  new  relation- 
ships around  the  Cross  of  our  Lord  Jesus 
Christ.  Mary  and  John,  the  mother  and  the 
friend  of  Jesus,  are  given  to  one  another  in 
a  new  way,  to  be  something  more  to  one  an- 
other than  they  had  ever  been  before.  John 
is  to  play  a  son's  part  to  the  bereaved  mother, 

*  Christian  Year. 


196  THE  VIRGIN  MOTHER. 

and  the  mother  is  to  look  to  him  for  guid- 
ance, protection  and  support,  while  she  gives 
to  him  comfort,  sympathy  and  love.  Think 
of  the  new  relationship,  the  kinship  of  grace 
that  was  formed  around  the  Cross  of  Jesus. 
Think  of  Mary  as  the  representative  of 
the  Church,  and  John,  whom  Jesus  loved, 
as  the  type  of  the  individual  among  the  faith- 
ful. Or  of  John,  as  the  representative  of  the 
priesthood,  and  Mary  as  the  elect  soul  com- 
mended to  the  care  of  the  ministry.  Or  see 
in  them  two  chosen  souls,  loved  by  Jesus, 
drawn  nearer  to  one  another  as  they  are 
drawn  near  to  Him  and  to  His  Cross.  See 
here  your  relationship  to  the  Church,  to  the 
ministry,  to  your  fellows.  Learn  to  be  all  you 
can  to  one  another.  Think  of  being  given  to 
one  another  by  Jesus  from  the  Cross.  O  the 
tender  love,  the  respectful  ministry  we  should 
exercise  one  towards  another !  Think  of  Mary 
receiving  John  at  the  Cross,  and  of  John  re- 
ceiving Mary.  Think  of  that  friend,  that 
pupil,  that  soul  whom  you  can  help,  support 
and  cheer,  as  given  you  by  Christ  from  the 
Cross:    **  Take  this  child  and  nurse  it  for 


AT  THE  CROSS.  197 


Me,"  He  says.*  Ah,  take  all  your  interests, 
all  your  duties,  all  your  charges  from  the 
Lord;  care  for  all/br  Him,  love  all  in  Him, 
and  then  give  back,  with  purity  of  intention, 
all  to  Him. 

Think  of  this  new  alliance  between  Mary 
and  John,  how  it  is  to  be  reproduced  contin- 
ually in  the  family  of  the  faithful.  Learn 
what  we  should  be  to  one  another,  each  to 
each;  Mary  giving  comfort,  as  woman  can 
to  man,  and  John  giving  protection  and  sup- 
port, as  man  to  the  Blessed  Mother.  Think 
of  the  converse  of  those  elect  souls;  think  of 
Mary,  giving  him  cognizance  of  facts  in  the 
early  life  of  Jesus  which  she  alone  could 
know;  and  of  John  giving  her  deeper  in- 
sight into  the  meaning  of  those  facts — that 
her  Child  was  the  very  Word  of  God,  of  one 
nature  with  the  Father,  *' by  whom  all  things 
were  made;"  that  it  was  He  who  was  made 
Flesh  of  her  substance,  **full  of  grace  and 
truth,  "f 

Think  how  we  should  supplement  each 
other's  knowledge,  be  large-hearted,  wel- 
*  Ex.  ii.  9.  t  St.  John  i.  14. 


198  THE  VIRGIN  MOTHER. 

coming  different  views  of  truth,  so  long  as 
they  do  not  contradict  one  another — balan- 
cing and  supplementing  one  another.  Re- 
member that  truth  is  infinite,  and  our  minds 
are  very  finite.  Do  not  seek  to  make  others 
see  only  what  you  can  see;  then  how  very 
little  any  would  see  !  Don't  merely  tolerate 
— no  one  wants  to  be  tolerated,  it  always 
implies  superiority  on  the  part  of  the  one 
who  tolerates  ;  but  generously  welcome 
another's  view,  it  will  supplement  your  own 
and  make  it  richer,  fuller.  Learn  large- 
heartedness  by  the  Cross  of  Jesus  Christ. 

IV.  Pass  on  to  consider  now  Marfs  share 
in  the  Glorious  Mystery  of  the  Resurrection, 
She  is  not  mentioned  in  the  story  of  the  Res- 
urrection ;  and  that  is  just  the  point.  She  is 
not  mentioned  all  through  the  story !  The 
last  we  see  of  her  is  at  the  foot  of  the  Cross, 
when  the  Lord  commends  her  to  the  care  of 
the  beloved  disciple  ;  then  she  vanishes 
from  our  sight  in  the  Gospel  records. 
Legend  has  been  busy,  and  Art  has  stepped 
in  where  it  has  no  sanction.     In  art  she  is 


AT  THE  CROSS.  199 


represented  as  assisting  at  the  entombment; 
and  legend  tells  the  touching  story  of  the 
Lord  appearing  first  to  His  Blessed  Mother 
on  Easter  morning.  But  how  much  more 
grand  is  the  simple  statement  of  the  Evange- 
list: **He  appeared  first  to  Mary  Magda- 
lene ! "  *  Blessed  Mary  needed  no  such  assur- 
ance of  His  Resurrection.  She  had  stood  by 
His  Cross,  and  she  knew  He  would  triumph. 
She  knew  that  that  was  not  the  end,  that 
God's  promise  could  not  end  in  failure,  that 
He  would  not  leave  His  soul  in  Hades,  nor 
allow  His  body  to  see  corruption;!  that 
somehow  or  other  death  would  be  over- 
thrown and  the  victory  won ;  that  His  words 
would  be  fulfilled,  that  He  would  *'rise 
again."  J  She  had  stood  there  at  the  Cross, 
"steadfast  in  faith,  joyful  through  hope, 
rooted  in  charity."  §  So  she  is  not  at  the 
tomb.  Nor  is  she  there  on  Easter  morning 
with  the  women,  to  pay,  as  they  thought, 
the  last  act  of  homage  to  their  dead  Master, 
and  to  embalm  the  corpse.     What  was  that 

*  St,  Mark  xvi.  9.  -j-  Ps.  xvi.  10. 

X  St.  Matt.  XX.  19.  I  Baptismal  Office. 


THE  VIRGIN  MOTHER. 


to  her?  He  is  not  going  to  lie  in  the  grave; 
she  will  stay  at  home  till  word  is  brought  to 
her  that  Jesus  lives,  that  He  has  conquered 
Death,  that  He  has  dispersed  His  foes! 
Others  may  mourn  their  Master,  but  she 
knows  that  her  Son  and  Lord  will  triumph. 
So  she  needs  not  a  sensible  appearance. 

To  whom  did  our  Lord  vouchsafe  a  special 
appearance  ?  Not  to  the  great  saints,  but  to 
the  penitents ;  not  to  John  who  stood  at  the 
Cross,  but  to  Peter  who  had  denied  Him; 
not  to  the  Virgin  Mother,  but  to  the  Magda- 
lene ;  to  Thomas,  who  could  not  believe ;  to 
the  two  disciples  who  were  straying  off  dis- 
couraged to  Emmaus;  to  the  weak  who 
needed  special  strength;  not  to  the  whole, 
but  to  the  sick. 

Ah!  don't  expect  all  to  be  sweetness,  com- 
fort, sunshine,  because  you  are  seeking  the 
Lord;  rather,  the  absence  of  sensible  com- 
fort may  be  a  token  of  advancing  strength. 
The  little  child  is  carried  in  its  mother's 
arms,  but  as  it  grows  it  is  put  down  that  it 
may  learn  to  w^alk,  and  stand  by  its  own  effort. 
We  are  not  always  to  be  carried,  like  chil- 


AT  THE  CROSS.  20l 


dren,  in  the  arms  of  grace ;  we  are  to  learn 
to  stand  and  to  walk. 

So  think  of  our  Lord's  dealings  with  His 
Blessed  Mother  in  the  days  of  the  Resurrec- 
tion, and  that  the  absence  of  any  sensible 
appearance  to  her  was  a  token  of  greater 
spirituality,  of  stronger  spiritual  vision,  on  her 
part. 

And  learn,  likewise,  the  lesson  of  impar- 
tiality from  His  dealings  with  His  disciples 
— how  He  shows  Himself,  not  to  those,  if 
we  may  say  so,  to  whom  it  would  have  been 
the  greatest  pleasure  to  appear ;  not  to  John, 
His  bosom  friend,  not  to  His  Blessed 
Mother,  but  to  Peter  who  had  denied  Him ; 
to  the  Magdalene  who  was  weeping  at  the 
tomb,  and  fearing  lest  the  terrible  cloud 
which  the  presence  of  the  Master  had  driven 
away  should  take  possession  of  her  again. 
She  had  felt  safe  in  His  presence — what  was 
to  become  of  her  now  ?  And  so  she  weeps 
bitter  tears  at  His  grave.  He  must  go  and 
comfort  her,  and  tell  her  that  though  gone 
from  sight.  He  would  be  evermore  near  to 
guard  and  protect  her.     **  I  am  not  come  to 


202  THE  VIRGIN  MOTHER. 

call  the  righteous,  but  sinners  to  repent- 
ance." * 

And  He  would  have  us  act  in  the  same 
way,  with  the  same  purity  of  intention,  con- 
cerning our  friends  and  those  who  have  been 
committed  to  our  care.  Not  to  do  what  we 
should  most  like,  to  seek  those  whom  it 
would  give  us  the  greatest  pleasure  to  be 
with,  but  those  who  need  us  most,  who  most 
require  our  care. 

Think  of  that  lesson  of  impartiality  and 
contrast  it  with  our  own  practice.  There  is 
this  or  that  girl  or  child  who  takes  in  every- 
thing that  is  said — you  can  almost  see  the 
lesson  taking  root ;  she  is  so  appreciative,  it 
is  a  delight  to  teach  her ;  you  give  her  lots  of 
time,  you  write  to  her  from  all  parts  of  the 
world !  And  there  is  that  other,  so  dull,  so 
lacking  in  responsiveness,  surrounded  by  such 
unfortunate  circumstances,  in  such  danger — 
she  is  so  hard  to  get  on  with,  so  difficult  to 
get  at,  so  encrusted  with  the  hard  shell  of 
reserve!  This  one  needs  all  the  greater 
care ;  the  other  is  sure  to  get  on ;  this  one  re- 
*  St.  Matt.  ix.  13. 


AT  THE  CROSS.  203 


quires  all  your  prayers,  your  thoughts,  your 
loving  sympathy.  Yes ;  Jesus  went  to  Mary 
Magdalene,  to  Peter,  and  did  not  vouchsafe 
a  special  appearance  to  the  beloved  disciple 
or  His  Blessed  Mother.  Learn  the  lesson  of 
really  acting  in  His  Name,  of  taking  your 
charge  from  Him,  loving  it  for  Him,  and 
then  offering  it  to  Him. 

i.  So  think  of  Mary  standing  by  the  Cross 
in  her  sorrow,  sharing  her  Son's  shame  and 
suffering,  as  the  pattern  of  the  faithful  soul. 

ii.  Think  of  her  as  seen  by  Jesus,  and 
spoken  to  by  Him  from  the  Cross ;  and  of  the 
hallowing  of  all  natural  relationships.  Think 
of  the  creation  of  new  ties  and  bonds  of 
grace  by  His  Cross  as  He  gives  Mary  and 
John  to  stand  in  a  new  relationship  to  one 
another. 

iii.  Consider  on  the  day  of  Resurrection, 
the  absence  of  Mary's  name  in  the  story — 
not  to  her  discredit,  but  rather  to  her  honor, 
because  she  can  do  without  that  special  mani- 
festation; she  is  not  dependent  upon  sensi- 
ble help;  her  faith  is  stronger,  her  vision 
clearer. 


204  THE  VIRGIN  MOTHER. 

iv.  Think  of  our  Lord's  impartiality  as 
giving  us  a  law  for  the  discharge  of  all  duties 
we  seek  to  fulfil  in  His  Name,  and  for  His 
sake. 

Let  us  repeat  Psalm  Ivii, 


CONCLUDING  ADDRESS. 

THE     VIRGIN     MOTHER     WAITING    FOR    THE    GIFT 
OF    THE    HOLY    GHOST. 

We  have  thought  all  through  the  Retreat 
of  the  example  of  the  Blessed  Virgin  Mother 
as  the  type  and  figure  of  the  Church  collect- 
ively and  of  each  individual  soul  in  the  com- 
pany of  the  faithful.  We  have  dwelt  on  every 
instance  in  which  she  comes  before  us  in  the 
Gospel  narrative,  and  on  her  complete  sur- 
render to  the  will  of  God.  We  have  thought 
of  her  predestination,  of  her  genealogy,  of 
her  training  in  her  early  years,  of  the  light 
thrown  upon  her  previous  history  by 
her  words  at  the  Annunciation;  we  have 
thought  of  the  Angel  coming  to  her  at 
the  Annunciation,  of  the  accomplish- 
ment of  God's  great  purpose  concerning 
her.  We  have  dwelt  on  the  Visitation,  and 
on  the  mutual  joy  of  the  Blessed  Virgin  and 
St.  Elizabeth,  and  on  the  outburst  of  that  joy 


2o6  THE  VIRGIN  MOTHER. 

as  she  breaks  forth  into'  her  glad  Magnificat, 
Then  on  the  Birth  of  the  Lord  and  the  ac- 
complishment of  the  Mystery  that  had  been 
foretold.  Then  there  was  the  Presentation 
in  the  Temple  and  the  Purification  of  the 
Mother.  We  passed  on  to  consider  the  Sor- 
rowful Mysteries :  The  flight  into  Egypt ;  the 
loss  of  the  Child  and  her  words  and  His  on 
the  finding  in  the  Temple;  the  mingled 
mystery  of  joy  and  sorrow  at  the  marriage  at 
Cana  of  Galilee.  And  then  we  thought  of  her 
presence  at  the  Cross  and  of  the  significance 
of  the  absence  of  her  name  from  the  story  of 
the  Resurrection. 

There  is  just  one  other  occasion,  and  one 
only,  on  which  her  name  is  mentioned  in  the 
New  Testament.  In  Acts  i.  14  we  find  her 
waiting  with  the  Apostles  in  the  upper  cham- 
ber for  the  day  of  Pentecost.  The  faithful 
eleven  were  gathered  together  in  the  upper 
room  where  the  Lord  had  celebrated  the  first 
Eucharist,  and  had  told  them  of  the  promised 
Comforter.  There  they  had  gathered  to- 
gether on  Easter  Day,  and  there  the  news  had 
been  brought  to  them,    "The  Lord  is  risen 


THE  GIFT  OF  THE  HOLY  GHOST.         207 

indeed !  "  *  There  He  had  appeared  to  them 
on  the  day  of  the  Resurrection,  and  again 
on  Low  Sunday.  There,  after  His  Ascension, 
they  are  keeping  their  Retreat,  and  "con- 
tinuing with  one  accord  in  prayer  and  sup- 
plication with  the  women,  and  Mary  the 
Mother  of  Jesus,  and  with  His  brethren.' 
They  are  waiting  for  the  fulfilment  of 
the  promise  which  they  had  heard  of 
Him. 

The  last  time  we  see  her  she  is  on  her 
knees  in  prayer,  the  type  of  the  Church  and 
of  every  faithful  soul.  She  has  done  her 
work;  now  she  is  on  her  knees  in  prayer, 
looking  for  fuller  gifts,  not  for  herself  alone, 
but  for  others  also.  Thus  we  part  with  her, 
not  as  a  mediatrix — not  prayed  to — not 
prayed  through — but  prayed  with;  there  is 
the  company  of  the  saints,  and  Mary  in  the 
midst;  all  are  brethren  and  sisters,  praying 
together  in  the  Body  of  Christ.  See  her 
waiting  there,  praying  with  them  for  further 
gifts— for  the  Gift  of  the  Holy  Spirit,  beyond 
what  even  she  has  received  before. 

*  St.  Luke  xxiv.  34. 


2o8  THE  VIRGIN  MOTHER. 

I.  Ah !  think  how,  in  going  out  of  Retreat, 
you  are  to  go  in  the  spirit  of  prayer;  your 
last  thoughts  to  be  on  your  knees  before  God, 
thanking  Him  for  all  He  has  said  and  done 
for  you,  and  looking  for  some  further  gifts. 
Yes,  in  Retreat  spiritual  things  seem  so 
clear  and  vivid,  so  real.  We  know  that  the 
shock  will  be  great  on  going  out  into  the 
world ;  it  is  like  going  out  of  a  hot  house  on 
a  cold  raw  morning  ;  we  get  a  chill,  and 
spiritual  cold  may  be  quite  as  fatal  as  phys- 
ical; it  may  fly,  not  to  the  head,  but  to  the 
heart. 

We  have  to  cherish  the  spirit  of  our  Re- 
treat, and  to  cherish  the  retreat  exercises  all 
through  our  ordinary  life;  in  our  home 
anxieties,  our  social  distractions,  in  all  the 
pressure  of  our  ordinary  work  and  occupa- 
tions. We  are  to  be,  like  Blessed  Mary,  on 
our  knees  in  prayer,  thanking  God  for  all  He 
has  given  us.  **  Mary  kept  all  these  things 
and  pondered  them  in  her  heart."  * 

II.  Think  of  her  as  the  true  Woman — the 
ideal  both  of  the  matron  and  the  maid — the 

*  St.  Luke  ii.  19. 


THE  GIFT  OF  THE  HOLY  GHOST.         209 

Blessed  Mother  on  her  knees  in  prayer.  The 
apostles  and  disciples  go  forth  to  their 
labours,  but  think  of  that  blessed  home  where 
she  and  John  are  together.  Think  how  it 
must  have  cheered  the  hearts  of  the  others  to 
know  that  John  was  offering  the  Holy  Eu- 
charist, and  Mary  assisting  at  it,  pleading  for 
them  and  for  the  success  of  their  preaching. 
Think  of  their  coming  back,  one  by  one,  and 
being  cheered  by  the  loving  care  of  the 
Blessed  Mother  and  the  beloved  disciple. 
Think  of  the  great  apostle  St.  Paul  with 
all  his  wondrous  powers,  being  introduced  to 
her.  Think  of  what  woman's  work  should 
be! — not  her  mere  active  work,  but  that 
other  side  of  it,  her  influence.  Praise  God 
for  it.  Try  to  support  those  who  have  not 
the  same  opportunities  for  prayer  that  you 
have;  and  let  others  be  gladdened  by  your 
intercessions.  And  let  your  work  be 
strengthened  and  tranquillized  by  the  inner 
devotional  side  of  your  life.  Don't  let  work 
crowd  out  prayer.  Think  of  the  blessings 
brought  down  on  the  Church  through  the  in- 
tercessions of  the  Blessed  Mother  and  St.  John. 


THE  VIRGIN  MOTHER. 


III.  Once  more.  Blessed  Mary  was  wait- 
ing with  the  Apostles  and  Disciples  for  a  fur- 
ther Gift  of  the  Holy  Ghost. 

The  Spirit  at  the  Incarnation  had  over- 
shadowed her;  but  that  was  an  external 
work.  He  had,  indeed,  taken  of  her  sub- 
stance to  fashion  the  sacred  flesh  in  which 
the  Eternal  Son  was  to  live  and  die  and 
reign ;  but  now  she  is  looking  for  something 
more.  That  holy  manhood  had  been  disci- 
plined and  sanctified  by  His  life  on  earth, 
**  perfected  through  suffering,"  until  in  the 
fullness  of  glory  He  should  sit  down  at  the 
Father's  right  hand,  thence  to  send  His 
Spirit  on  His  Church.  And  now  His  Spirit 
is  to  take  of  the  things  of  Christ  and  to  give 
them  to  Mary !  Now,  Mary  is  to  be  partaker 
of  Christ's  substance.  He  had  taken  hers; 
the  Spirit  had  come  upon  her  at  the  Annun- 
ciation ;  now,  that  which  she  had  given  is  to 
be  given  back  to  her,  and  that  glorified 
human  Body  is  to  interpenetrate  her  very 
being;  she  is  to  be  admitted  to  a  closer 
union  with  her  Lord — far,  far  closer  than 
that    which   she   had  enjoyed  during  those 


THE  GIFT  OF  THE  HOLY  GHOST.         211 

nine  months  between  the  Annunciation  and 
His  Birth.  Now  He  dwells  in  her  heart, 
now  she  is  to  be  made  partaker  of  His 
glorified  humanity. 

And  so  think  that  whatever  gifts  we  have 
received,  there  are  further  gifts  in  store. 
Whatever  light  we  have  received,  there  is  a 
still  clearer  illumination  awaiting  us.  On- 
ward and  upward !  * '  Forgetting  those  things 
which  are  behind,  and  reaching  forth  into 
those  which  are  before" — pressing  on,  year 
after  year,  retreat  after  retreat,  through  all 
the  varied  experience  and  discipline  of  life — 
that  we  may  attain  '*  the  mark  of  the  prize 
of  our  high  calling  of  God  in  Christ  Jesus,"  * 
that  we  may  lay  hold  of  that  for  which  we 
are  laid  hold  of  by  God;" 

To  Whom  be  glory  for  ever.     Amen. 

*  Phil.  iii.  13,  14. 


APPENDIX. 


THE  VIRGIN  BIRTH. 

No  APOLOGY  can  be  needed  for  venturing  to 
discuss  this  subject.  The  question  in  these 
days  is  forced  upon  us : 

(I.)  On  what  grounds  do  you  believe  the 
miraculous  conception  of  Christ?  (II.)  Is 
it  possible — or  reasonable  ?  (III.)  What  is 
the  moral  value  of  the  doctrine  ?  These  are 
the  chief  forms  in  which  the  question  is  pre- 
sented to  us.  Let  me  offer  a  few  suggestions 
with  regard  to  each  of  these  points. 

I.  Stress  is  laid  on  the  fact  that  the  mirac- 
ulous conception  is  told  only  by  two  out  of 
the  four  Evangelists;  that  the  story  takes 
somewhat  different  forms  in  the  two  Gospels 
in  which  it  is  found ;  that  St.  Mark's  Gospel, 
which  is  supposed  to  represent  the  earliest 
record  of  our  Lord's  life,  is  silent  on  the 
213 


214  APPENDIX. 


subject ;  that  nothing  is  said  about  it  in  the 
remaining  books  of  the  New  Testament. 

As  Dr.  Abbott  puts  it,  *'0f  the  nine 
authors  or  thereabouts  of  the  different  books 
of  the  New  Testament,  only  two  contain 
any  account,  reference  or  allusion  to  the 
miraculous  conception."  * 

Such  is  the  objection,  or  adverse  argu- 
ment, so  far  as  Scriptural  testimony  is  con- 
cerned. 

To  this  reply  may  be  made : 

(i.)  That  the  point  was  not  one  on  which 
the  Apostles  in  their  early  teaching  would  be 
likely  to  dwell  much.  Their  special  func- 
tion was  to  be  witnesses  of  what  they  had 
seen  and  heard.  Accordingly  they  insist 
chiefly  and  continually  upon  the  actual  truth 
of  the  Resurrection  of  their  Master — a  mir- 
acle, which,  being  themselves  absolutely 
assured  of  its  truth,  they  urged  as  at  once 
(a)  the  sign  and  the  vindication  of  Jesus' 
Messianic  claims,  and  {U)  a  manifestation  of 
the  superhuman  dignity  of  His  Person. 
**Born  of   the  seed  of  David  according  to 

*  The  Kernel  and  the  Husk,  p.  267. 


APPENDIX.  215 


the  flesh,  He  was  declared  to  be  the  Son  of 
God  with  power,  according  to  the  Spirit  of 
holiness,  by  the  resurrection  from  the 
dead."* 

This  preternatural  fact,  the  fulfilment  of 
the  *'sign"  which  He  had  Himself  prom- 
ised,! a  fact  concerning  the  reality  of  which 
they  offered  themselves  as  witnesses,  J  would 
carry  with  it  a  readiness  to  accept  a  fact  like 
the  Virgin-Birth  concerning  which  the  same 
sort  of  evidence  was  not  possible — a  defect, 
it  may  be  remarked,  which  it  shares  with  the 
paternity  of  every  child  of  Adam. 

(2.)  The  silence  of  the  Fourth  Gospel  on 
the  subject  is  certainly  no  difficulty.  For, 
on  any  theory  of  its  date  or  authorship,  §  it  is 
a  supplementary  record,  and  with  few  excep- 
tions does  not  reiterate  statements  of  his- 
torical fact,  which  had  already  been  related 
by  earlier  Evangelists,  and  which  were  by 

*  Rom.  i.  3, 4. 

t  St.  John  ii.  18  sq. ;  St.  Matt.  xii.  $8  sq. 

J  Acts  i.  22  ;  ii.  32,  etc. 

§  I  beg  that  this  expression  may  not  be  understood  as 
implying  any  doubt  on  the  writer's  part  as  to  the  Johannine 
authorship  of  the  Fourth  Gospel. 


2l6  APPENDIX. 


the  time  this  Gospel  was  written  a  part  of 
the  commonly  received  belief  of  the  Chris- 
tian Society.  Bearing  this  in  mind,  and  the 
general  character  of  St.  John's  writings,  it 
would  seem  rash  to  say  that  there  is  "no 
allusion  "  to  the  Virgin-Birth  in  the  Fourth 
Gospel.  The  description  in  the  prologue  of 
the  spiritual  birth  of  the  faithful,  **  which 
were  born  not  of  blood,  nor  of  the  will  of  the 
flesh,  nor  of  the  will  of  man,  but  of  God  " — 
in  close  connection  with  the  statement  that 
**the  Word  was  made  flesh" — would  seem 
to  suggest,  very  probably  at  any  rate,  a  par- 
allelism in  the  Apostle's  mind  between  the 
spiritual  birth  of  those  to  whom  the  Only- 
begotten  Son  gave  the  privilege  of  becoming 
sons  of  God,  and  His  own  Birth  in  our 
nature.* 

In  any  case  St.  John's  account  of  the  In- 
carnation in  no  way  conflicts  with  the  mirac- 
ulous story  related  by  St.  Matthew  and  St. 
Luke.  Rather,  as  we  may  see  later,  his 
teaching  concerning  the  Person  of  the 
Incarnate   Logos    is    felt   to    be    a   natural 

*  St.  John  i.  12-14. 


APPENDIX.  217 


explanation  of  what  might  otherwise  have 
seemed  in  them  to  be  fantastic. 

So  with  regard  to  St.  Mark.  Had  he 
given  any  account  of  our  Lord's  early  years, 
there  would  be  some  ground  for  pitting  him 
(so  to  speak)  against  St.  Matthew  and  St. 
Luke.  But  his  story  begins  with  the  Bap- 
tism as  the  inauguration  of  Jesus  for  His 
public  ministry — quite  naturally,  if  the  tra- 
dition be  true  (which  there  seems  no  reason 
for  doubting,  while  there  is  a  good  deal  of 
internal  evidence  in  its  favor)  that  Mark's 
Gospel  is  practically  the  putting  in  writing 
of  Peter's  oral  teaching.  St.  Peter  begins 
his  account  of  the  Lord's  life  ("the  begin- 
ning of  the  Gospel  of  Jesus  the  Christ,  the 
Son  of  God  ")  at  the  point  where  he  came  in 
contact  with  the  Christ,  handed  on  to  him  by 
John  the  Baptist."* 

(3.)  But  St.  Matthew  and  St.  Luke,  it  is 
said,  give  different  accounts  of  the  miracu- 
lous conception.  We  have  **  two  Annuncia- 
tions," one  to  Joseph  and  one  to  Mary. 
What  of  that  ?    Does  it  not  show — as,  in  a 

*  Comp.  with  St.  Mark  i.,  St.  John  i.  29  sq. 


2i8  APPENDIX. 


somewhat  different  way,  the  varying  ac- 
counts of  the  appearances  of  the  Risen 
Lord — the  independence  of  the  writers  ? 
And  is  it  not  quite  conceivable  that  the  two 
Evangelists  give  the  facts  as  they  had  gath- 
ered them  respectively  from  the  only  two 
persons  who  could  be  evidence  in  the  mat- 
ter, Joseph  and  Mary  ?  St.  Luke,  who  tells 
us  that  he  had  been  at  pains  to  gather  in- 
formation— concerning,  it  may  be  noted, 
**  those  things  which  were  already  surely 
believed  "  amongst  the  disciples — from  those 
who  from  the  beginning  were  eye  witnesses, 
evidently  bases  his  whole  account  of  the 
early  events  and  mysteries  of  the  Incarna- 
tion on  the  testimony  of  St.  Mary,  who  alone 
could  have  furnished  him  with  the  facts  he 
relates — not  with  regard  to  the  miraculous 
conception  alone,  but  throughout  his  first 
two  chapters.  And  with  this  agrees,  as  has 
been  commonly  noted,  the  different  style  of 
that  portion  of  his  narrative.*     St.  Matthew, 

*  St.  Luke  i.  5 — ii.  52,  being  more  full  of  Hebraisms,  as 
would  naturally  be  a  literal  rendering  into  Greek  of  an 
Aramaic  report. 


APPENDIX.  219 


on  the  other  hand,  tells  all  in  his  first  two 
chapters  from  the  standpoint,  as  we  might 
say,  of  Joseph.  * 

Passing  from  Scriptural  testimony  it  would 
seem  clear,  both  from  the  evidence  of  early 
Creeds  and  from  the  writings  of  the  Fathers, 
that  the  doctrine  in  question  was  a  part  of 
the  original  body  of  Christian  teaching  com- 
municated by  the  Apostles  to  the  Churches 
they  founded,  before  they  committed  their 
oral  teaching  to  writing.  On  what  other 
theory  should  we  account  for  the  agreement 
of  all  early  summaries  of  Christian  belief 
in  declaring  the  Virgin  Birth  of  the  Incarnate 
Son  ?  A  challenge  may  be  safely  made  to 
produce  a  single  document  of  this  sort  which 

*  The  question  of  St.  Matthew's  quotation  of  Isaiah's 
prophecy  (St.  Matt.  i.  22;  Isa.  vii.  14)  is  intentionally  passed 
over,  as  raising  a  side  issue,  which,  however  interesting,  is 
by  no  means  necessary  to  the  understanding  or  accepting  of 
the  Evangelist's  narrative.  To  suppose  that  Matthew  built 
his  record  on  Isaiah's  prophecy  is  wholly  gratuitous. 
His  phrase  "  that  it  might  be  fulfilled "  may  mean  no 
more  than  that  he  saw  in  the  event  a  fulfilment  of  the 
ancient  prophecy,  by  no  means  to  the  exclusion  of  a  more 
direct,  historical  reference.  Comp.  St.  Matt.  iv.  13  sq. 
and  Isa.  ix.  i,  2. 


220  APPENDIX. 


hints  at  any  other  mode  of  Birth.*  Such 
perfect  agreement  in  substance  amid  varia- 
tions of  expression  could  only  arise  from  a 
common  rvnog  dLdax^jg  f  delivered  to  the 
several  Churches  by  their  Apostolic  founders. 
Imitation  in  those  days  of  comparatively 
scant  opportunity  for  intercourse  would  have 
been  impossible. 

*  It  should  in  candour  be  said  that  the  Nicene  Creed  in  its 
original  form  did  not  contain  any  statement  on  the  mode  of 
our  Lord's  Birth,  but  simply  affirmed  that  He  "  came  down 
and  was  incarnate."  The  Constantinopolitan  Symbol  added 
the  words,  "  Of  the  Holy  Ghost  and  the  Virgin  Mary."  It 
has  been  sometimes  argued  from  this  that  the  Virgin  Birth 
was  not  regarded  as  of  the  same  importance  in  the  East  as 
by  the  early  Latin  Chiurch.  But,  not  to  mention  other  East- 
em  authorities,  we  have  in  Irenseus  (A.D.  i8o),  who  repre- 
sents both  East  and  West,  a  confession  of  faith  quite  explicit 
on  this  point :  "  We  believe  .  .  .  His  Birth  of  a  Virgin 
and  His  Passion,  and  His  Resurrection  from  the  dead,  and 
the  Ascension  into  the  heavens  in  the  flesh,  of  the  beloved 
Christ  Jesus  our  Lord,"  etc.  And  of  this  Creed  Irenseus 
says,  "  No  otherwise  have  the  Churches  in  Germany  believed 
and  delivered,  nor  those  in  Spain,  nor  the  Celts,  nor  those  in 
the  East,  nor  in  Egypt,  nor  in  Libya,  nor  those  established  in 
the  central  parts  of  the  earth,"  etc.  Iren.  adv.  Haer.  1.  i.  10. 
See  Heurtley's  Creeds  of  the  Western  Churchy  pp.  7-9,  and 
Maclear's  Introduction  to  the  Creeds^  pp.  15,  99,  300. 

•j-Rom.  vi.  17. 


APPENDIX. 


One  or  two  quotations  may  be  allowed 
from  the  Epistles  of  St.  Ig-natius,  which  in  a 
sense  combine  the  testimony  of  Fathers  and 
of  Creeds,  since  they  give  the  earliest  traces 
of  the  different  Articles  of  the  Creed  as  we 
know  them,  and  as  they  were  evidently 
already  at  that  time  familiar. 

In  his  Letter  to  the  Trallians  *  Ignatius  bids 
his  disciples,  * '  Be  deaf  when  any  man  speak- 
eth  to  you  apart  from  Jesus  Christ,  who  was 
bom  of  the  race  of  David,  who  was  the  Son 
of  Mary,  who  was  truly  bom  and  ate  and 
drank,  was  truly  persecuted  under  Pontius 
Pilate,  was  truly  crucified  and  died  in  the 
sight  of  those  in  Heaven  and  those  on  earth 
and  those  under  the  earth.  Who  moreover 
was  truly  raised  from  the  dead." 

So  at  the  beginning  of  his  Epistle  to  the 
Smyrnaeans  f  Ignatius  thanks  God  that  those 
whom  he  is  addressing  are  *' fully  persuaded 
as  touching  our  Lord,  that  He  is  truly  of  the 
race  of  David  according  to  the  flesh,  but  Son 
of  God  by  the  Divine  will  and  power,  truly 
bom  of  a  Virgin  and  baptized  by  John,  truly 
*  Trail,  9  (Bp.  Lightfoot's  translation).  f  Smym.  i. 


222  APPENDIX. 


nailed  up  in  the   flesh  for  our  sakes  under 
Pontius  Pilate,"  etc. 

It  is  needless  to  multiply  citations  (as 
might  of  course  easily  be  done)  to  prove  that 
from  the  first  and  throughout  Christendom 
the  Virgin  Birth  of  our  Lord  was  a  part  of 
Christian  belief.  If  it  was  not  a  genuine 
part  of  Apostolic  tradition,  the  **  corrupt 
following  of  the  Apostles  "  must  indeed  have 
begun  early.  And  in  any  case  the  universal 
acceptance  of  the  doctrine  would  seem,  if  any 
inspiration  of  the  Christian  Society  by  the 
Spirit  of  Truth  be  believed  in,  to  determine 
the  point.  For,  be  it  noted,  this  is  not  a 
question  of  view  but  of  fact.  It  is  not  like 
views  that  may  be  taken  of  some  generally 
accepted  fact,  which  may  well  vary  in  differ- 
ent ages,  as  among  minds  of  different  degrees 
of  intelligence ;  this  is  a  question  of  fact,  or 
rather  (in  the  mind  of  those  who  do  not  accept 
the  fact)  of  the  translating  of  an  idea  (certainly 
not  a  very  clear  one)  into  an  imaginary  fact. 
Can  we  suppose  that  the  whole  Church,  to 
which  the  guidance  of  the  Spirit  of  Truth 
was  promised,  would  have  been  allowed  to 


APPENDIX.  223 


make  such  a  mistake,  and  on  such  a  point,  a 
mistake,  too,  that  has  eaten  so  deep  into  her 
thought  and  life  ?  The  case  is  not  parallel 
to  any  of  the  Old  Testament  stories  with 
which  some  might  be  inclined  to  compare  it. 
For  (a)  while  none  will  contend  that  either 
St.  Matthew  or  St.  Luke  were  writing  alle- 
gory, or  supposed  themselves  to  be  aught  but 
chroniclers  of  fact,  (b)  the  event  related  was 
not  of  by-gone  time  but  of  comparatively 
recent  occurrence  when  they  wrote. 

II.  To  leave  the  ground  of  testimony,  let 
us  consider  the  intrinsic  reasonableness  of  the 
doctrine.  Where  the  doctrine  is  doubted  we 
may  be  fairly  sure  that  the  doubt  springs 
originally  not  from  a  sense  of  a  want  of  suffi- 
cient testimony,  but  from  an  uneasy  feeling 
in  the  presence  of  the  miraculous  and  super- 
natural, and  a  desire  to  minimize  this  element 
in  Christian  teaching. 

The  popular  objection  to  miracles  as  a 
priori  '*  impossible  "  is  simply  shallow.  Have 
we  come  to  such  a  clear  and  exhaustive 
understanding  of  the  **  Laws  of  Nature" 
that  we  can  attribute  to  them  a  rigid  infiexi- 


224  APPENDIX. 


bility, — in  which  the  idea  of  God  is  extin- 
guished and  man  becomes  a  machine?  In 
speaking  of  physical  science  people  are  in  the 
habit  of  using  law  and  cause  as  if  they  were 
interchangeable.  But  is  this  so  ?  Do  **  the 
Laws  of  Nature  "  mean  more  than  that  cer- 
tain phenomena  are  observed  always  to  follow 
one  another  in  regular  sequence  ?  Do  they 
in  any  way  supersede  or  render  unnecessary 
for  causation  the  action  of  a  Will?  Physical 
science  knows  nothing  of  the  relation  of 
cause  and  effect,  only  of  antecedent  and  con- 
sequent. Directly  we  fall  back  on  a  Creative 
Will  behind  the  forces  of  Nature,  the  a  priori 
objection  to  what  we  call  miracles  has  van- 
ished. It  stands  to  reason  that  such  a  power 
can'  manipulate  His  own  forces,  can  vary 
their  direction  and  their  results,  can  produce 
immediately  results  that  ordinarily  are  medi- 
ately effected."* 

What  is  there  then  against  reason  in  the 

*  See  Canon  Malcolm  MacColl's  Ripon  Lectures  on  the 
Nicene  Creed,  Christianity  in  Relation  to  Science  and 
Morals.  Part  of  his  argument  on  this  article  I  have  done 
little  more  than  condense  in  the  preceding  sentences  concern- 
ing miracles. 


APPENDIX.  225 


variation,  on  a  great  occasion  and  for  a  great 
moral  purpose,  of  the  ordinary  law  of  the 
transmission  of  life  through  two  parents, 
especially  when,  as  will  not  be  disputed,  we 
have  in  the  present  day,  both  in  the  vegetable 
and  animal  kingdoms,  instances  of  agamo- 
genesis  f^  For  the  acceptance  of  Miracles 
two  things  only  are  reasonably  required, — 
sufficient  evidence  and  an  adequate  purpose. 
I  may  quote  in  this  connection  the  words  of 
the  late  Archbishop  Thomson  in  his  General 
Introduction  to  the  Gospels  in  the  Bible  [or 
Speaker' s'\  Covi77ientary^  in  which  he  shows 
the  untenableness  of  many  elaborate  hypo- 
theses concerning  the  origin  of  the  Gospels, 
of  one  of  which — ''the  original  document" 
theory — he  says  that  it  "has  this  advantage 
as  a  theory  that  its  facts  are  all  derived  from 
the  mind,  and  are  therefore  practically  un- 
limited; "  the  supply  will  always  be  equal  to 
the  demand,  t  **The  argument  (Dr.  Thom- 
son says)  that  miracles  are  not  so  much  im- 

*  See  the  articles  on  "Bees"  and  on  "Biology"  in  the 
EncyclopcBdia  Britannica. 
I  Page  xi. 


226  APPENDIX. 


possible  as  unlikely,  that  the  testimony  needs 
to  be  very  strong  to  overcome  the  antecedent 
improbability  of  a  miracle,  has  just  this  much 
truth  in  it,  that  where  everything  betokens 
that  Nature  is  running  her  ordinary  course, 
the  interposition  of  an  isolated  or  aimless 
miracle  could  not  be  looked  for,  or  readily 
believed.  But  when  Jesus  was  born  in  Beth- 
lehem, when  Jesus  died  on  Calvary,  things 
were  not  in  their  ordinary  course.  A  won- 
derful life,  and  the  promise  of  a  wonderful 
work  for  man,  were  accompanied  by  wonders 
wrought  for  men."  * 

This  point  leads  to  the  consideration  of  the 
reasonableness  of  the  doctrine,  as  distinct 
from  its  possibility. 

If  the  Catholic  doctrine  of  the  Incarnation 
be  accepted,  the  miraculous  conception  seems 
to  follow  almost  as  a  matter  of  course.  The 
expression,  *'  the  Catholic  doctrine  of  the  In- 
carnation "  is  used,  because  in  these  days  there 
is  a  good  deal  of  writing  and  speaking  about 
the  Incarnation  in  which  that  word — like 
others — is  used  in  a  sense  which,  if  not  un- 

*  Page  Ix. 


APPENDIX.  227 


natural,  is  widely  different  from  that  which 
historically  has  belonged  to  it.  If  by  the  In- 
carnation is  meant  that  on  an  already  exist- 
ing human  person,  Jesus,  there  descended  in 
extraordinary,  say  in  unique,  measure  the 
Divine  influence,  then^  of  course,  the  Virgin 
Birth  is  (so  far  as  we  can  see)  a  wholly  un- 
necessary and  gratuitous  addition  of  miracle. 
But  if  with  Christendom  in  general,  with 
certainly  the  great  Creeds  of  Christendom, 
we  begin  with  a  Divine  Persoft,  Who,  having 
existed  from  all  eternity,  in  time  was  **  mani- 
fested in  the  flesh  " — then  one  might  almost 
say  that  no  other  entrance  into  the  world  is 
imaginable  than  that  which  the  Creed  states 
to  have  been  chosen,  **  Conceived  by  the 
Holy  Ghost,  Born  of  the  Virgin  Mary." 

Thus  the  single  Personality  of  the  Incar- 
nate Word  is  guarded;  a  pure  and  sinless 
Humanity  is  secured,  exempt  from  trans- 
mitted evil,  free  from  all  flaw;  really  one 
with  us  in  nature,  being  formed  from  the 
substance  of  the  Virgin  Mother,  while  that 
which  was  taken  from  her  was  wholly  fash- 
ioned by  the  Spirit  of  God.     St.  Paul's  doc- 


228  APPENDIX. 


trine  of  **the  Second  Adam"  (Who  is 
"from  Heaven"),  a  fresh  starting-point  of 
renewed  humanity,  would  seem  really  to  re- 
quire the  supernatural  conception  of  Him 
Who  is  so  designated.* 

The  same  may  fairly  be  urged  with  re- 
spect to  the  absolute  Sinlessness  of  Christ — 
**Holy,  harmless,  undefiled,  and  separate 
from  sinners,"  the  ''Lamb  without  blemish 
and  without  spot " — which  is  constantly  in- 
sisted on  by  the  Apostolic  writers,  f  Thus 
intimately  and  delicately  are  truths  related 
one  to  another.  Of  this  a  word  more  pres- 
ently. 

*  I  Cor.  XV.  45 ;  comp.  the  argument  in  Rom.  v.  12  sq.  and 
2  Cor.  V.  14,  15  (R.  v.). 

fHeb.  vii.  26;  i  Pet.  i.  19. 

Concerning  the  Single  and  Divine  Personality  of  our 
Lord,  see  Liddon's  Bampton  Lectures,  pp.  262-7,  ^^^  the 
Christmas-day  Sermon  in  the  second  volume  of  Newman's 
Sermons.  The  following  passage,  at  once  eloquent  and 
exact,  may  be  quoted  from  the  Introduction  to  Dr.  Bright's 
Addresses  on  The  Seven  Sayings  from  the  Cross,  pp.  lo,  li : 

Who,  then,  is  He,  the  Jesus  of  the  Passion  ?  He  is  not  a 
preeminent  saint,  who  responded  with  a  signal  readiness  to 
the  Divine  voice,  who  realized  more  worthily  than  other 
men  "  the  Divine  idea  "  of  human  excellence,  and  to  whom, 
by  a  laxity  of  phrase  not  free  from  profaneness,  men  might 


APPENDIX.  229 


Here  let  me  quote  a  paragraph  from  a  ser- 
mon of  Dr.  Liddon's  on  the  subject  (in  his 
Christmastide  volume)  *  in  which  he  deals 
with  a  point  often  urged  in  this  connection, 
and  (as  was  his  wont)  acutely  claims  as  an 
argument  for  the  truth  that  which  was  ad- 
duced as  an  objection. 

Doubtless,  here  and  there  in  the  heathen  world,  there 
were  legends  of  sages  or  poets  who  were  bom  of  virgins ; 
but  these  legends  are  related  to  the  history  of  our  Saviour's 
Birth,  as  are  false  to  true  miracles.  As  the  counterfeit 
miracle  implies  the  real  miracle  of  which  it  is  a  coimterfeit, 
so  the  idea  of  virgin  birth,  here  and  there  discoverable 
in   Paganism,  points  to  a  deep  instinct  of  the  human  race, 

thus  ascribe  a  so-called  "  moral  divinity."  No,  He  is  liter- 
ally and  essentially  Divine ;  He  is  "  the  only-begotten  Son 
of  God,"  that  is,  the  one  Son  by  nature,  and,  because  He  is 
thus  Son,  is  "  God  from  God."  The  «  I "  in  Him,  His  very 
Self,  His  Personality,  is  Divine,  not  human ;  yet  has  He  con- 
descended, in  His  miraculous  love,  to  take  our  humanity  into 
union  with  His  Person,  to  assume  as  His  own,  from  the  first 
moment  of  their  existence,  a  human  body  and  soul ;  and  this 
without  the  sUghtest  germ  of  sin,  without  any  possibiUty  of 
deviation,  in  the  movements  of  that  soul,  from  the  will  of 
the  Eternal  Father,  but  with  all  the  innocent  instincts  and 
affections  of  our  nature,  so  that,  while  remaining  unchange- 
ably God,  He  could  also  be  "  a  High  Priest  able  to  sympa- 
thize with  our  infirmities,"  etc. 

*Serm.  vi.  "  Bom  of  a  Virgin,"  pp.  95,  96. 


230  APPENDIX. 


and  to  a  high  probability  that  the  absolute  religion  would 
satisfy  it.  Men  felt,  Pagans  though  they  were,  the  oppres- 
sion and  degradation  of  their  hereditary  nature ;  they  longed 
for  some  break  in  the  tyrannical  traditions  of  flesh  and  blood ; 
they  longed  for  the  appearance  of  some  being  who  should 
still  belong  to  them,  yet  in  a  manner  so  exceptional  as  to  be 
able  to  inaugurate  a  new  era  in  humanity.  Revelation, 
surely,  is  not  less  trustworthy  because  it  recognizes  an  in- 
stinct which  only  led  men  to  do  it  justice,  and  which  was  in 
accordance  with  moral  truth. 

In  regard  to  another  line  of  thought 
which  has  been  (curiously,  as  I  must  think) 
urged  as  antagonistic  to  the  doctrine  of  the 
Incarnation,  as  the  Church  hath  received  the 
same,  including  this  subsidiary  point  which 
we  are  considering — the  theory  or  doctrine 
of  Evolution,  I  should  like  to  refer  to  Bishop 
H.  M.  Thompson's  clever  and  eloquent  use 
of  this  very  theory  to  illustrate  the  unique 
character  and  person  of  Christ,  in  the  fourth 
of  his  ** Bishop  Paddock  Lectures"  on  The 
World  and  The  Kingdom,  **The  Child  in 
the  Manger"  is  the  title  of  the  lecture. 
*' There  is  a  half  truth  (he  says)  in  the 
thought  of  those  who  imagine  the  Faith  a 
development.  There  is  a  half  truth  in  every 
falsehood.      The    Divine    Religion    has    its 


APPENDIX.  231 


human  side  as  well  as  its  divine.  The 
'  treasure,'  in  the  largest  sense,  is  in  earthen 
vessels.  The  environment  for  Christ  and 
for  Christianity  is  developed  in  what  we 
blindly  call  the  natural  order,  but  the  envir- 
onmejit  does  not  make  Christy  The  analogy 
is  perfect  between  His  character  and  teach- 
ing, and  His  Person. 

III.  I  have  already  more  than  once  hinted 
at  a  part  of  the  answer  which  I  should  make 
to  the  last  question,  which  it  was  proposed 
to  consider, — Cui  bono  ?  What  is  the  moral 
value  of  a  belief  in  the  Virgin-Birth  of 
Christ  ?  Supposing  it  to  be  true,  what  does 
a  man  lose  who  fails  to  accept  it  ?  What  re- 
lation has  it  to  conduct  ?  How  can  it  be 
counted  among  beliefs  necessary  to  sal- 
vation ? 

I.  The  reply  which  has  been  already  par- 
tially anticipated  is  this.  Truths  have  an 
indirect  as  well  as  a  direct  value.  Suppos- 
ing some  to  be  themselves  without  immedi- 
ate bearing  on  life  and  conduct,  they  may 
guard  and  protect  other  truths  which  have  a 


232  APPENDIX. 


direct  and  tremendous  moral  import.  For 
instance,  in  this  case,  the  Virgin-Birth  I 
should  regard  as  an  integral  part  of  the  true 
doctrine  of  the  Incarnation,  as  witnessing  to 
our  Lord's  unique  Personality,  His  sinless 
and  representative  manhood,  His  perfect 
sacrifice. 

2.  Then,  again,  the  analogy  between  our 
Lord's  Incarnate  life  and  the  spiritual  life  of 
His  people  ought  not  to  be  overlooked.  The 
teaching  of  the  New  Testament  writers,  of 
St.  Paul  more  especially,  taken  up  into  the 
devotional  thought  of  the  Church,  and  em- 
bodied in  much  of  our  Prayer-Book  lan- 
guage, is  that  each  mystery  of  the  Lord's 
Incarnate  life  has  its  counterpart  in  the 
spiritual  experience  of  the  faithful.  For  us 
He  was  bom,  that  we  might  be  reborn  in 
Him.  For  us  He  died,  that  with  Him  we 
might  die  to  sin  and  self.  For  us  He  rose 
again,  that  in  Him  we  might  rise  to  newness 
of  life.  And  how  was  He  born?  ** Con- 
ceived by  the  Holy  Ghost,  Bom  of  the  Vir- 
gin Mary."  It  is  the  law  of  spiritual  birth, 
for  the  formation  of  Divine  life  within  the 


APPENDIX.  233 


soul.  **Not  by  might  nor  by  power" — not 
by  human  resources,  or  natural  means,  *  *  but 
by  My  Spirit,  saith  the  Lord  of  hosts." 
From  first  to  last  our  sanctification  is  the 
work  of  the  Holy  Spirit,  by  His  preventing 
and  assisting  grace.  No  friend  or  minister 
can  do  more  than  Gabriel  did,  or  Joseph — 
announce  God's  message,  to  which  the  soul 
must  itself  respond  with  self-surrender,  that 
the  Spirit  may  accomplish  His  work,  and 
then  guard  the  life  of  grace  which  has  been 
by  His  overshadowing  communicated. 


DATE  DUE 


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